Journey to Redemption
by K4ndY
Summary: After being betrayed, mutilated and tortured three decades ago, Vincent is found by a mismatched group trying to save the Planet. He joins their ranks to seek vengeance and find redemption.Will he be able to control the beasts lurking in his mind before it's too late, or will he add another sin to his already long list?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII. Final Fantasy 7, the storyline and its characters belong solely to Square-Enix. **

**Summary:** _After being betrayed, mutilated and tortured three decades ago, Vincent is found by a mismatched group trying to save the Planet. He joins their ranks to seek vengeance and find redemption. While they journey, will he be able to control the beasts lurking in his mind, or will he add another sin to his already long list?_

**Warnings:** **Contains violence, gore, foul language and mature content. As such, this story is rated M.**

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

**Chapter 1**

**Three decades ago.**

_Pain. Excruciating, unbearable pain. Lying on the ground, he tried to stay awake, tried to focus on anything to keep himself from loosing consciousness, but even with his eyes wide open he could barely see. Somewhere in the background, he could hear the footsteps of the man responsible for his suffering, as he paced the room. He was speaking with someone, but most of the words were drowned out by the buzzing in his ears. _

"…_just couldn't leave well enough alone, could he…" _

"…_terrible, terrible waste... " _

"…_will make a fine specimen, yes…"_

_All the noise finally stopped as the man stepped out of the room, leaving the wounded man alone with his thoughts and his pain. 'Am I dying?' he wondered, as he struggled to breathe. He could taste blood in his mouth, _his_ blood, gurgling up from his lungs every time he breathed. He moved his hand to his blood covered chest, to the three bullet wounds there, and he knew all was lost. He had failed. He had failed himself. He had failed the unborn child. But must importantly, he had failed _her. _Finally, the pain lessened as his mind and body started to shut down, his final thought going to his reason for living, the one good thing in his life. 'Lucrecia…'_

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

_He drifted in darkness for what felt like an eternity, finally at peace with everything for the first time in a very long time. He knew there was something important he should be doing, someone he needed to help, but his memories were lost to him, nothing more than fleeting dreams. He just couldn't bring himself to care anymore. _

_All was perfect until he felt a faint shock, followed by another, and another, each more intense than the previous, the pain finally pulling him from what he assumed to be death, back to the world of the living. He desperately wanted to go back to that darkness, but instead he woke to a world of pain, the likes of which he has never felt before. It felt as if someone was trying to rip off his left arm, and sure enough when he opened his eyes he found that madman bent over him, working on doing just that. The mad scientist paused in his gruesome task when he realized his test subject was awake and staring at him. _

"_Ah, so you've finally awakened, Vincent Valentine." The man walked around the table Vincent was strapped to and stopped on the other side, putting away whatever instrument he had been using and picking up a bone-saw, before walking around the table again to return to his work. Vincent cried out as the saw ripped through his flesh and bone. He struggled against his bindings, trying to escape this torture, but the madman simply tightened the bindings and continued cutting through the already mutilated appendage. _

"_You thought you could simply come here, flirting around with _mywife_ and planting doubts in her mind," the scientist said through clenched teeth, sweat pearling on his forehead from the exerting task of sawing through bone, "talking of morals as if _you_ had any and nearly ruining everything I've worked so hard to accomplish." _

_With a resounding "_crack_" and a gush of blood, the arm was finally torn free, bringing the bound man dangerously close to fainting. Not that he would complain if he did, but the darkness never came, much to his disappointment. He breathed heavily, trying to block out the pain but failing miserably. The smell of blood was overwhelming, making his head spin. Vincent could feel something in the back of his mind, some dark and powerful presence trying to break free, triggered by the smell of blood. 'What's happening to me?' Vincent thought, trying to remain calm. His entire body felt raw, and as he looked down toward his right arm, he could see his skin turning black and leathery. A feral growl escaped his throat as the beast inside him fought to gain control of his body. The scientist took notice of what was happening and walked around the table again before returning with a syringe._

"_Now, now Valentine," the man of science said as he filled the syringe with an orange liquid, taping the glass a few times to dislodge any bubbles. "We can't have you turning into that demon and destroying my laboratory again, can we?" He stuck the needle into the other man's good arm, just as he was starting to trash around. The serum calmed the demon and Vincent sighed in relief as he felt himself regain control of his body once more, but the relief was soon replaced with outrage and confusion. _

"_Hojo!" he said in a low, rumbling voice, glaring daggers at the man in question before pressing on. "Killing me was not satisfying enough for you?" Hojo simply continued working on what was left of Vincent's arm, apparently trying to slow the bleeding. "What is this _demon_ you talk of? What have you done to me?" Vincent demanded to know, now fully enraged at being ignored. _

_Having stopped most of the bleeding, Hojo looked up at the half naked man on the surgical table with a satisfied grin on his face, all the while wiping his hands clean of blood on his white lab coat. He walked over to a desk in the corner of the room and retrieved a laptop before returning to the surgical table. He typed on it for a moment before turning the laptop so it faced Vincent. _

_A video was playing on the small screen, probably captured by a security camera. The footage showed a room with three large upright tanks, two of them empty and the third one filled with mako. In it, Vincent was shocked to see himself floating limply in the mako, still wearing the bloodied suit he had on the night he was shot. The Vincent in the video remained motionless for a few more seconds before he suddenly opened his eyes. He started shaking violently in the tank as his body morphed, his skin taking on a dark tinge as large bat-like wings erupted from his back, ripping through his shirt and jacket. He clawed at the glass surrounding him, trying to escape, before balling his fists together and shattering the glass with a powerful punch. The demon possessed Vincent then started destroying the laboratory, randomly throwing things around. This continued for about two minutes, until a group of armed men entered the room and proceeded to shoot at him with some tranquilizer darts, bringing him down quickly. _

_Hojo closed the laptop, setting it down next to the bone-saw he had been using earlier. "The demon is known as Chaos." He had his back to Vincent as he said this. "It's only one of the many improvements you've undergone in the past few months. In fact, I doubt you can even qualify as human any longer. Unfortunately, the creature is rather unstable, as you've already found out." He turned to face Vincent before continuing. "It took me nearly a month to repair the damage you caused after transforming that time. Since then, measures have been taken to prevent this from happening again. Some modifications have been made so you can control the beast, but because it is so powerful, it cannot be contained entirely. That is why I created a serum that could reverse the transformation, in case you were to lose control again. I hadn't had the chance to test it until today; I'm happy to see it works perfectly." _

"_You're mad," accused Vincent under his breath, amazed at how the man could talk so casually about how he had used him as a guinea pig. "I should have killed you when I had the chance."_

_Hojo's head snapped back as his sadistic laughter echoed through the vast room. Finally, he walked up next to the other man's head and bent down a little as if to confide a secret to him. _

"_You truly believe I am the sole person responsible for your new additions,_ _don't you?" asked Hojo, still smiling. He adjusted his glasses before continuing. "If it had been up to me, you would still be dead, rotting away in a ditch somewhere." He straightened himself up again, absentmindedly tucking some stray locks of greasy hair behind is ear. "It was _dear_ Lucrecia who took pity on you. She managed to keep you alive, but in doing so she had to modify you a bit." The look of shock on Vincent's face caused the madman to erupt in laughter once again. "Of course, I did help her out here and there," Hojo added, "that is until she was indisposed. Since then, I've been the only one working on you." _

"_Lucrecia, why..." Vincent whispered to himself, before realizing something Hojo had just said. "What do you mean, _indisposed_? What have you done to Lucrecia? _Where is she_?" He was practically raving now, desperate to know what had become of his lover. _

_The room was silent for a moment before being filled once again with Hojo's laughter. "After I took care of you, the Jenova project continued on as scheduled. The Jenova cells injected into Lucrecia have produced a perfect specimen, full of promise. Unfortunately they had a devastating effect on my wife's body. Sadly, she died a few days after giving birth to her son, Sephiroth." The scientist looked anything but sad as he informed Vincent of Lucrecia's fate. "But that's all in the past now. She's been dead for two months already." _

_He laughed again, but Vincent did not hear it. His mind was filled with thoughts of murdering the man next to him, of ripping him apart limb by limb to avenge the woman he had loved. His fury woke the beast inside of him once again, but he did nothing to try and contain it. Struggling to get free, he felt the bindings holding his arm down start to loosen. Hojo could not react in time when Vincent's arm shot out to grab him. He was thrown across the room, knocking over some chairs and a small bookshelf as he landed in a corner. _

"_Damned beast," mumbled a stunned Hojo as he got painfully back on his feet. One quick glance towards the middle of the room confirmed to him that a very pissed, half transformed Vincent was in the process of freeing himself of the last of his bindings. He rushed to his work desk and produced a small dart gun from the top drawer. He aimed the gun and emptied out the clip just as the last strap snapped and the demonized Vincent pounced off the table towards him, blood red leathery wings unfolded in a menacing matter. To Hojo's relief, the tranquilizer worked quickly and Vincent was out cold before he could ever reach him. _

_After assessing that Vincent wasn't getting back up, Hojo gathered up the courage to pick up the unconscious man and lay him back on the table, before binding him once more. _

"_I was hoping to do this with you conscious the whole time," he told Vincent, even if he couldn't hear him, "but I guess I'll just have to keep you under general anesthesia until I'm finished with you." He adjusted his glasses again, before picking up where he had left of on his _patient'_s arm. _

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

**Present time.**

A small group of people stood in front of the Shinra Mansion near Nibelheim, debating on whether or not they should enter the old, depleted looking building. It was nearly nightfall and a storm was approaching, so they had to decide quickly on what to do.

A large, intimidating looking man with dark skin was leaning against the gate, his back to the building. He was playing with the safety of a gun attached to his right arm and looking rather pissed.

On the wall surrounding the property stood a petite boyish girl with short dark hair and stormy eyes, throwing and catching a shuriken up and down while complaining her head off and trying her best to annoy the large man below her.

Also annoying the man was a robotic cat perched on an overstuffed Mog. It was currently dancing and skipping around the group, waving a megaphone all over the place.

Beside the large man sat a large cat-like creature with bright red fur, the flaming tip of his tail slowly twitching as he watched the group argue with his one good eye.

Two girls stood to the side, whispering to one another. One had long dark brown hair and wine colored eyes, wearing a very skimpy outfit that drew attention to her ample chest. The other had long chestnut curls, stunning green eyes and a modest pink dress.

Facing the group was a man with spiky blond hair and blue eyes, carrying a very big sword on his back. He was staring intently at the building, apparently unaware of the debate going on around him. After a few moments, he shook his head as if to clear it and finally paid attention to what his companions were arguing about.

"Do we _have_ to go in that spooky, old place? I mean come on, there's a perfectly good inn back in town." The girl on the wall was now standing precariously on one foot, all the while still throwing her shuriken. "So what if those freaky guys back in the village said Sephiroth was in here. I don't think we should trust what they say, I mean come on, people who go around all dressed in black mumbling about some "reunion" all day long just have to be short a few screws!" She was about to whine some more when she heard a gruff response coming from below her.

"Will someone shut that goddamn thief up before I shoot her off the fuckin' wall!" shouted the gun-armed man in frustration. He had just about reached his limit for the day.

The "thief" in question jumped off the wall to stand in front of him with both hands on her narrow hips. "Hey! I've got a name you know! It's Yuffie Kisaragi, ninja extraordinaire, got it?" The large man pushed himself away from the gate and was about to reply none too politely when he was cut off.

"Barret! Yuffie! That's enough!"

They both turned around to face their spiky haired leader. "I've already told you why where not staying at the inn, Yuffie. Something doesn't feel right about the village. I saw it burn to the ground five years ago, but now it's as if there never was a fire." He ran his fingers through his hair before continuing. "I don't think Sephiroth is here, but it can't hurt to search the place. Besides, it's getting dark and it's going to rain soon. We might as well spend the night here."

The young ninja sighed dramatically, before sitting down cross legged next to the cat, scratching him between his ears. "I know that Cloud, but still," she looked up at her leader, "What if it's haunted or something?"

"With all her whinin', wouldn't be surprised if she scared all the fuckin' ghosts away," said Barret under his breath.

"Hey, I heard that, you know!" Yuffie stood up with clenched fists, accidentally pulling some of the large cat's hair. "Oops! Sorry Red…" She looked down sheepishly at her four legged comrade.

"It is fine, Yuffie," came Red's reply, his voice as calm as ever but his tail twitching slightly more than usual, showing his irritation.

"We should at the very least take a look inside," said the girl in the pink dress.

"Aeris is right," said the other girl beside her. "Why are we standing out here in the cold arguing instead of going inside where it's warm and dry?" As she said this she walked forward and pushed the gate open. "Well, what are you guys waiting for? Come on!" She then proceeded towards the mansion, reaching the door just as the first rain drops started to fall.

"Ahh! Oh no, rain! Wait for me Tifa!" Fearing a short-circuit, the robotic cat ran towards the Shinra Mansion, nearly running Yuffie over in the process.

"Hey! Watch where you're steering that overgrown stuffed toy, Cait Sith!" yelled Yuffie as she regained her balance. She ran after the Mog and robot, her fear of ghosts momentarily forgotten.

Aeris looked at what was left of the group still standing outside the gate. "Well then, shall we follow?"

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

_**Author's note: **Please review and let me know what you think of this so far._


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII. Final Fantasy 7, the storyline and its characters belong solely to Square-Enix. **

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

**Chapter 2**

As the last members of the group entered the mansion, a gust of wind blew across the dark room disturbing the thick dust covering everything before settling again as Cloud and Barret closed the massive doors. With the doors now closed the room grew even darker, illuminated only by the fire on Red's tail. Dark shadows moved across the room with every twitch of his tail as if taking on a life of their own. Footsteps echoed through the room as Cloud made his way to a nearby window, moving the heavy curtains aside to let some light in. They were finally able to see the room more clearly.

"Wow! This place is huge!" Yuffie cried out as she ran towards a set of stairs towards the back of the room. She had just reached the bottom of the stairs and was about to climb when something grabbed her arm. Terrified, she screamed and twisted herself around to land a solid punch to whatever was behind her. Her attacker released her with a muffled curse, holding on to the shoulder she had just punched. It took Yuffie only a second to realize who her _attacker_ was.

"Oh my God, Barret I'm so sorry!" The young ninja reached out to touch his shoulder, but he moved away, still cursing. She huffed, crossing her arms. "Why'd you have to go and sneak up on my like that anyway?"

"I ain't sneakin' up on nobody," answered Barret angrily while rubbing his sore shoulder. "You're the one who's not payin' attention."

"What? I'm a ninja, remember? I always pay attention!"

"Barret's right," said Cloud as he approached the two. "You should know better then to just run off on your own in a place like this." As he said this, he put one foot on the first step. He shifted his weight forward slightly and the board under his foot split in two. For once, Yuffie was silent as she watched him extract his foot from the crumbling stairs, knowing Barret had just saved her from seriously injuring herself.

"Hey you guys!" Tifa called out from the other side of the room. "Come see what I've just found."

She waited for everyone to gather around her before showing them a small piece of paper with something written on it. "I found this in the corner over there," she said, pointing to the left of the main entrance. "It's some sort of letter."

"What does it say?" asked Aeris as she peeked over her friend's shoulder.

"I'm not sure… It's getting kind of dark to read." Upon hearing this, Red moved next to Tifa, raising his fire-tipped tail a bit higher.

"Are you able to read it now?" asked the talking cat to his travel companion. Tifa nodded in reply and proceeded to read what was on the paper.

"_I __must get rid of all those that stand in the way of my research, even that one from the Turks. I scientifically altered him and put him to sleep in the basement_._ If you want to find him, then search the area._"

Tifa looked up from the paper, "Altering someone and putting him to sleep in the basement? Sounds like something out of a horror movie." Aeris and Yuffie both nodded in agreement.

"Is that all of it?" asked Cait Sith from behind Yuffie, before jumping off his Mog onto the ninja's head in order to get a better look.

"Hey! Get off of me you fur bag!" Yuffie caught Cait's tail and flipped him onto the floor.

"I guess that's all," said Tifa after checking both sides of the paper for more information. She then looked up and locked eyes with the man in front of her. "Cloud, do you think there's really could be someone trapped in the basement somewhere?"

"I don't know Tiff," came Cloud's quiet response. "Maybe."

As Cait Sith dusted himself off, he noticed another piece of paper currently being stepped on by Yuffie. He yanked the poor girl's foot from the floor and retrieved the yellowed paper. Yuffie fell down hard on her ass with a pained yelp. She attempted to catch the robotic cat, but he retreated behind Tifa's legs before jumping on the older girl's shoulder. Barret exploded in laughter at the ninja's predicament and Aeris giggled as she helped her friend off the floor. Cait handed the paper to Tifa and sat more comfortably on her shoulder, ignoring the death glare he was getting from a very red Yuffie.

"It looks like some sort of treasure hunt," said Tifa.

"_Move the dial on the safe carefully, but quickly. You have 20 seconds. You can not go past the numbers while turning. The 4 hints for the numbers are as followed: The lid of the box with the most oxygen; Behind the Ivory's short of tea and ray; The creek in the floor near the chair on the second floor... then go to the left five steps, up nine steps, left two steps, and up six steps._"

"What do you suppose is in the safe?" Aeris asked, flipping her long hair over her shoulder to twirl strands of it around her fingers.

"Whatever it is, I just know it has to be something valuable. Hey! I betcha there's a ton of rare materia in that safe!" said Yuffie with a glint in her eye.

The others just shook their heads at her antics before setting off to find the safe. It took the young girl a few seconds to realize she had been left behind. "Wait up you guys!" shouted Yuffie as she ran after her friends in the next room.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

A quick search around the first floor proved to be unfruitful, and so the group moved on to the second floor by means of the second, none rotting set of stairs. They finally found the safe in one of the rooms of the western wing.

"Now that we've found the safe, all we need to do is follow the clues to find the right combination," said Tifa as she unfolded the two pieces of paper she was holding on to and reading them for a second time. As she did so, Cloud approached the safe, a frown marring his features. He stared at it for a few moments before speaking out.

"We shouldn't open it," said the leader of the group in a serious voice, turning to face his team-mates.

"What? Why not?!" came Yuffie's indignant response. The others were also curious as to Cloud's sudden decision not to open the safe and they were all staring at him, awaiting an explanation.

"I'm… not sure." It took a few more seconds for Cloud to speak again. "Something feels wrong about this, but I don't know what it is."

"Maybe you're just tired," suggested Aeris, reaching out to touch Cloud's arm. "We have been traveling a lot lately, and none of us have gotten much sleep."

He looked up and was rewarded with one of her lovely smiles. "Yeah, I guess you're right. We'll open the safe tomorrow morning, after a good night's rest."

"Alright then," said Tifa as she refolded the papers. "We'll look for the clues tomorrow." She yawned and left the room, soon followed by her friends.

They set off to bed, separating into two groups, the girls taking up residence in the room across the one with the safe while the others opted for a room in the eastern wing.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

A few hours later, Aeris was awakened with a start when a deafening crack of thunder resounded through the manor. She sat up in bed, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. It was still dark outside, but every now and then a flash of lighting would light up the room. It was during one such moment of brief illumination that Aeris noticed someone was missing. She got out of bed and carefully walked over to the bed furthest from hers.

"Tifa," whispered Aeris loudly, trying to wake the other girl up. Tifa mumbled something about wanting "five more minutes" before she turned facing the wall and kept on sleeping. She tried again, this time louder. "Tifa, wake up!" Aeris shook the girl slightly and Tifa finally woke.

"Is it morning already?" asked a very sleepy Tifa, hiding a yawn behind her hand.

"I think Yuffie's missing." Aeris told her, ignoring her friend's question.

"What?" Tifa looked over to the bed next to her, finding it to be empty. "Maybe she got thirsty or something," suggested Tifa as Aeris sat down next to her on the bed. Seeing the concern on her friend's face, she decided to appease her worry by helping her look for the young ninja.

As they entered the corridor outside their bedroom, they heard a muffled noise coming from the room with the safe. They tiptoed over to the door, listening for any sound. Hearing nothing, Aeris reached for the doorknob while Tifa raised her fists just in case. They both held their breath as the door finally opened, revealing a figure draped in shadow. Lightning flashed just then, causing both girls and the figure to scream.

"Tifa, Aeris, is that you?" asked the person in the room, inching towards the entrance to try and see how was there. Another flash of lighting revealed the figure to be none other then Yuffie. "Oh my god you guys, you nearly gave me a heart attack! What are you two doing up?"

"We should be asking you that question," said Tifa, still holding her hand to her chest, trying to calm herself down. "I just hope we didn't wake the boys up with all our screaming."

Yuffie leaned against the doorframe, turning her head to peek down the dark corridor, towards the eastern wing. "Knowing them, they'd probably stay asleep through a stampede of chocobos."

"So," said Aeris, looking at the young ninja. "What _are_ you doing up?"

"Heheheh…" Yuffie was laughing nervously, rubbing the back of head. "Well, you see, with all that thunder and lighting outside I just couldn't sleep, so, well, I decided I'd try and find the clues to the safe myself." She was now pacing the room, holding on to the papers they had found earlier. They were staring at her now, suspicion written all over their faces. "I wasn't going to keep the treasure to myself, I swear!" she hurriedly said before they could accuse her of the crime.

Tifa gave Yuffie a sceptical look before walking past her and kneeling down in front of the safe, followed closely by Aeris. "Did you find the combination yet?" she asked the ninja who had finally stopped pacing.

"I think so, but I can't get the safe to open." Yuffie glared at the safe and sighed.

"Maybe you're just doing it wrong," said Aeris, plucking the papers from Yuffie's hand. She mentally read the instructions on how to open the safe and moved to stand in front of it. "What's the combination?"

"Well," started Yuffie, "I found the first clue in the room down the hall, the one with lots of plants in it. There was a piece of paper stuck inside the lid of a box in there that said _Right 36_." She was counting down her fingers as she talked. "The next one was the easiest; it was behind the piano downstairs. That one said _Left 10_. The last one was under a floorboard near the guys' bedroom. It said _Right 59_."

"You're missing one number," stated Aeris as she looked at the papers. "There should be 4 hints according to this."

"Let me see that." Yuffie reached to grab the papers but accidentally tripped on a broken chair lying on the floor. She fell on Aeris and they both landed in a puddle of water near an opened window.

"Gross!" Yuffie exclaimed as she untangled herself from Aeris. "I'm all wet now." She was about to get back up when she noticed the papers floating in the puddle, the ink slowly disappearing in the water. She picked them up quickly to prevent any further damage but it was too late. The ink was gone.

"Just great!" she said with a huff. "Now we'll never know the last number." She threw the drenched papers on the floor and proceeded to kick at the safe, trying in vain to get it to open.

After pulling Aeris back on her feet, Tifa walked over to the safe again. She looked down at the papers on the floor and noticed something strange. She bent down to take a closer look. "_Right 97_."

"Huh? Whatcha talking about Tifa?" Yuffie had stopped trying to force the safe open and turned around.

"The ink's gone, but now it's written _right 97_ on the bottom the page." She moved so Yuffie could see the paper for herself.

"It must have been written in invisible ink," suggested Aeris. "I guess the water was what made it visible to read."

"This is great! Now we can open it and see what's inside!" She bent down in front of the safe and tried the combination. After a few tries, a faint "_click_" was heard from inside the safe. Yuffie turned the handle and slowly pulled the door open, Tifa and Aeris both leaning forward behind her to try and peak inside. "_What in the world…_?"

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

"_Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeek_!"

Cloud shot out of bed upon hearing the girls scream. "Everyone wake up!" He yelled as he retrieved his Buster Sword. "The girls are in trouble!" The other's where up and ready by the time Cloud ran out of the room and they made their way quickly towards the western wing of the mansion.

Less then two minutes had ticked by from the time Yuffie had first opened the safe to the time Cloud made it to the room, but already the three girls were in serious danger. Out of the safe had appeared a massive monster made up of a red half and a purple half (how it had fit into such a tiny space remains a mystery), and the girls where ill equipped to fight it. Yuffie and Aeris where both unarmed, seeing as they had left their weapons in the bedroom. Tifa was kicking and punching the monster as best she could, but the creature had somehow managed to steer her into a corner, leaving her little room to fight or escape. She had already received massive damage from both physical and magical attacks. Since Yuffie had her materia with her at all times, she was attempting to divert the monster's attention away from Tifa by casting Fire2 repeatedly, while Aeris concentrated her healing powers on Tifa.

Barrelling into the room, Barret opened fire, a stream of bullets shooting out of his gun-arm towards the deformed creature in the middle of the room. A bestial roar was heard over the deafening sound of the machine-gun as Red launched himself onto the monsters back, biting and scratching the red half. By the time Cloud ran forward to attack, the monster had lost interest in Tifa and turned to face its other opponents. Cloud jumped up as he reached the monster, slashing his sword in an upward arc and using the momentum from his jump to do some major damage.

The creature bellowed in pain, trashing around for a moment about the room. The purple half of it had nearly been cut clean in half by Cloud, its black blood oozing all over the floor. Finally the purple part stopped moving, leaving only the red part. Cait Sith cast Stop on the remaining half, giving him time to run across the room to join the girls and administer a high potion to Tifa.

Cloud hacked and slashed at the paralysed creature, finally taking it down by stabbing it through the heart. It collapsed to the grown, dead, before disintegrating into nothing.

"You girls alright?" inquired Barret, switching the safety back on on his still smocking gun-arm.

"Yeah, I think so," said Tifa. Aeris and Yuffie both nodded in agreement.

"What the heck was that thing, and where did it come from?" asked Cait Sith, still looking at the spot the monster had disappeared from.

Before the girls could answer, Cloud walked over to the safe, bending down to inspect it. "It came from inside the safe." All eyes were on the blond leader now. "I thought we had agreed not to open the safe before morning," he said, looking over at the girls with a disappointed look on his face. "Why did you open it?"

Tifa and Aeris both looked down and said nothing, feeling ashamed for having disobeyed their leader and friend. Yuffie on the other hand felt no such guilt. "Hey! I never agreed to anything ya know! Besides, how was I supposed to know there'd be a ten feet monster crammed inside that tiny thing?" She walked over to Cloud defiantly, arms crossed in front of her. Cloud stood up to face the glaring girl. A staring contest ensued between the ninja and the swordsman, neither of them backing down.

Wanting to defuse the situation before things got out of hand, Aeris interjected herself between the two. They both stopped staring at each other and instead looked at Aeris. "So then," she started with a smile, looking at Cloud as she spoke. "Do you suppose the creature had been guarding something inside that safe?"

"That is indeed a good question," said Red, relieved to find that the tension between Cloud and Yuffie was all but gone. "Perhaps we should look inside and find the answer."

"Well since it's already opened, I don't see any reasons not to check out what's inside," approved Cloud. He bent down once more in front of the safe and pushed the door completely open. The others held their breaths as he reached inside to retrieve the safe's content.

Finally he stood up and held out his findings for the group to see. He opened one hand, revealing an old rusty key.

"What?" Yuffie cried out, not believing her eyes. "You mean we nearly got our asses handed to us just for _this_?" She pointed at the key with annoyance. The others were also disappointed at having risked their lives for a key, especially since they didn't know what it opened.

Cloud ignored the young girl's outburst and opened his other hand, revealing a shiny red orb.

"A summon materia!" Yuffie grabbed the materia from Cloud's outstretched hand, rolling it around her fingers as she took a closer look at it. "I think it's a rare one, too. Looks like an unmastered Odin." Being the materia expert she was, no one stepped in to contradict her.

Yuffie then looked up pleadingly at their leader. "Can I keep it, _pleeeeaase_?"

"You can hold on to it for now," allowed Cloud. He smiled a bit when the overenthusiastic girl proceeded to do a small victory danced, a huge smile plastered on her face. He then looked down at the key, wondering what to do with it.

Tifa, who had been quiet for a while now, spoke up from where she was standing behind Aeris and Yuffie. "Cloud, didn't you say you had stayed here for a short while five years ago?" Cloud looked at Tifa and nodded. "Yeah, I stayed here a few days along with Sephiroth, around the time he went mad. This was just before he burned down the village after he learned about his origin from those books in the basement." Cloud had a haunted look in his eyes, remembering the events from five years ago.

"Do you still remember how to get to the basement?" asked Tifa expectantly. She was now standing directly in front of Cloud.

"Yes…" Cloud answered, focussing on the present once more. "Why do you ask?"

"Because," she said, "I know what the key is for."

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

_**Author's note: **Hi there! Took me a lot less time then I thought to finish this chapter, and I have to say I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out. Let me know what you think of this story so far. Looking forward for your reviews. Next chapter should be up in a week or two, depending on schoolwork._


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII. Final Fantasy 7, the storyline and its characters belong solely to Square-Enix. **

****

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

**Chapter 3**

It had taken Cloud very little time to remember the location of the secret entrance leading to the basement. As it turned out, the entrance was hidden behind a bookshelf in the room the boys had been sleeping in. The tricky part had been to find out which book had to be pulled out in order for the bookshelf to move aside and the door to open. Twenty minutes later, the group found itself carefully walking down a set of spiralling stairs. Red XIII was leading the way, guiding the group with his flaming tail. Cloud was second, followed closely by Aeris who was clinging to his arm. Tifa was next, trying to drag a very reluctant Yuffie behind her. Barret was last in line, keeping a safe distance from the distressed ninja. They had left the robot behind to make sure they didn't accidentally get locked in the basement.

"Come on Tifa, please let me go!" Yuffie was pleading with the older girl, trying to wrench her wrist from Tifa's grasp and failing miserably. Her voice echoed loudly, making Yuffie wince. "Can't I stay upstairs with Cait Sith to wait for you guys?" She had lowered her voice to a whisper, still tugging at her trapped appendage.

"Calm down Yuffie," said the older girl with a reassuring voice. She was trying to keep a brave façade for the frightened ninja, but Tifa had to admit to herself that she too was a bit unnerved. It was eerily quiet, aside for their footsteps and Yuffie's whining, and the more they descended the darker it got, despite Red's flame. Tifa was having a hard time keeping her footing with Yuffie squirming behind her. She had nearly tripped twice already, the only thing saving the both of them from falling into the abyss next to them being Tifa's firm grip on the stone wall. "We offered you to stay upstairs instead of Cait Sith but you refused, remember?"

Yuffie remembered the offer quite clearly. She had refused, afraid of being left alone in the creepy mansion with ghosts and monsters, but the more she thought about it now, the more she was willing to face a few ghosts on her own. '_Even the ghosts are afraid of coming down here,'_ thought Yuffie as she inched unconsciously closer to Tifa. Glancing up briefly, the ninja discovered she could no longer see the entrance to the basement. She finally stopped struggling against Tifa, too afraid of the dark to go back upstairs on her own. She had a bad feeling about what they would find in the basement, and the closer they got to the bottom, the worst the feeling got.

Yuffie wasn't the only one with a bad feeling. The entire group could feel the oppressive vibes coming from the basement, as if something was trying to ward them off. After what seemed like an eternity, they finally reached the bottom of the stairwell. They stopped in front of a dark, narrow corridor. The impenetrable darkness prevented them from seeing much of anything, Red's flaming tail only illuminating a few feet in front of them. Cloud walked out of the circle of light, waiting for his Mako enhanced eyesight to adjust to the darkness.

"Something terrible happened down here," whispered Aeris to no one in particular, wrapping her arms around herself tightly as she repressed a shudder. The others said nothing, but silently agreed with the girl's statement.

Having assessed there was no immediate danger up ahead, Cloud started walking forward, only looking back briefly to make sure the others were following. They walked in silence for a few minutes until Red stopped suddenly, ears perked up. "I hear something coming," he said in a low growl, his muscles tensing under his skin. The others readied their weapons and waited silently, listening intently for any signs of danger. They heard nothing at first, but then after a few seconds faint squeaking sounds could be heard. Before any of them had the time to react, they were surrounded by hundreds of flying creatures, fluttering all around them and sometimes bumping into the group in their haste.

"BATS!!!" cried out Barret, barely hearing himself over the squeaks and the thunderous sound of so many bat wings flapping all around them. He panicked, opening fire at the ceiling in an attempt to scare them away. The others were also startled by the sudden appearance of so many bats and were vainly trying to keep the creatures at bay by swatting their hands and weapons at them. Just as suddenly as they had come, the bats were gone, leaving the group of friends even more nervous then they had previously been, but otherwise unharmed.

"Let's go," said their leader, his voice showing none of the fear he had felt just moments before. He hurried the group forward, anxious to find whatever they were after down here as fast as possible so they could leave. He was fairly certain that bats weren't the only things hiding in the darkness and he was worried they may have attracted unwanted attention to themselves by making so much noise.

They came across a few doors along the dark hallway, all of them locked. Cloud tried the key they had found earlier on each of them, but with no luck. He was about to give up, thinking that Tifa had been wrong about the key, when he came across one final door. He inserted the key in the keyhole and to his surprise, it turned and the door was unlocked with a loud '_click'_. Putting the key away, he reached for the doorknob with his left hand, his right hand resting on the hilt of his sword in preparation for whatever was on the other side of the door. Holding his breath, he turned the knob and pushed the door open…

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

"_BATS!!!"_

Years had passed since he had last heard voices of the living, his only companions being the ghosts of the past that had plagued his many nightmares. The muffled noises and voices the sleeper had been hearing for the past few hours were unlike those he had grown accustomed to over the years, but they were not enough for him to arise from his slumber. They were simply registered as being part of another nightmare by his numb mind before he ignored them and fell back into a deep sleep. The cry he had heard minutes ago however could not be blamed on his nightmares, and so the sleeper slowly woke, opening his eyes for the first time in a very long time.

He blinked a few times, the last traces of his nightmares slowly fading into nothing. He shifted a bit, testing his muscles to make sure everything was in working order. His movements were restricted by wall all around him, and as he strained his vision, it became clear to him that he was lying in some sort of box. He was confused by this, as he could not recall when or why he had been placed in this box, but for now this was the last of his worries.

He could hear people approaching his location, an armed group since moments earlier he had also heard a machine-gun. Positioning himself so he could exit the box quickly, he discovered he had a gun in his possession. Making sure it was loaded, he listened and waited as he heard a door unlocking, his muscles tensing in preparation for the ensuing confrontation. Waiting for the door to open, he pushed up on the lid in front of him with full force and jumped to his feet, aiming his gun at the door as the intruders entered the room.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

To say Cloud was surprised would be an understatement. When he had opened the door, he had found nothing more then a room full of coffins. The last thing he had expected was for the lid to the nearest coffin to come flying off and for a man to jump out of it faster then should have been possible with a huge gun pointed directly at him.

All three girls shrieked behind him at the sudden apparition as he released his massive Buster Sword from his back and held it in front of him in a defensive position. Barret came up beside him with his gun-arm at the ready, quickly followed by Tifa and Red. Aeris and Yuffie were both still in the hallway, partly because of the limited space in the room, but in Yuffie's case it was mostly because she was terrified of the man.

The man in front of them was a frightful sight. Everything about him screamed dangerous. He wore mostly black clothing underneath a tattered red cloak that hid most of his figure, including the lower half of his face. A dangerous looking golden claw replaced what should have been his left arm, the sharp digits tense and seemingly ready to strike. His boots were also tipped with sharp looking golden metal. The man had very pale skin, contrasted sharply by his long raven hair held back by a red bandana. His most striking feature however was his blood red eyes, which seemed to be glowing in the semi-darkness.

The strange man was eyeing the group with suspicion, still as a statue. He seemed hesitant to attack them, apparently trying to assess whether they were a threat to him or not. Cloud was a bit thrown off by this. After he had pulled that gun on them, he had expected the stranger to attack without question. He decided the best course of action was to wait and see what the man would do next, and so he signalled for the others to back out of the room. Barret gave their leader a confused look at this, but did as he was asked and left out the door with Tifa and Red, throwing a dirty look at the stranger over his shoulder.

With only Cloud left in the room, the stranger's stance visibly relaxed, but he did not lower his gun. Cloud was getting a bit unnerved by the man's intense staring and eerie stillness, and so he finally decided that he was going to have to make the first move. He moved his sword to a less threatening position by his side and was about to talk but he was cut off by the man in front of him.

"Who are you?" asked the stranger in a low, intimidating voice, still refusing to lower his weapon.

Deciding he had nothing to lose by answering, Cloud did just that. "My name is Cloud Strife, ex-Soldier and leader of the group called Avalanche," introduced Cloud, pointing first to himself and then to the group standing outside the room.

"Avalanche?… Do you work for Shinra?" asked the man again, distrust shining in his eyes.

"Work for Shinra? Hell no!" answered Barret abruptly from behind Cloud, sounding insulted at the insinuation.

"Barret…" warned Cloud without looking back, afraid that Barret's outburst would provoke the armed man in front of them. To his relief, his only reaction was to gaze briefly at the black man standing outside the door before locking eyes with Cloud again. The gun-armed man said nothing more and settled for silently fuming with his arms crossed.

"Well?" the stranger pressed on, apparently not finding Barret's answer sufficient.

"We don't work for Shinra. In fact, our group's initial goal was to bring down that corrupt company before they destroyed the Planet." Cloud waited for the stranger's reaction to his answer, but seeing none, he continued. "However, our main goal has changed recently. We are currently chasing down a man named Sephiroth, and we have reason to believe he may have come to this mansion, which is why we came here in the first place."

"Sephiroth?" said the man as if the name meant something to him. "What do you know of him?" he asked before Cloud could ask him the very same question.

"Sephiroth was a powerful Soldier, once considered a hero. However, he went mad five years ago in this very mansion and proceeded to massacre an entire village before he was believed to be killed." A look of horror crossed the stranger's face briefly at hearing this, before his eyes hardened once more. He waited for Cloud to continue. "Recent events have revealed Sephiroth to be very much alive. We're not sure exactly what he's up to yet, but my guess is it has something to do with what he discovered here about his true origins five years ago. Whatever he found out, it led him to believe that he was a Cetra and that the Planet belonged solely to him and his 'mother' Jenova."

Cloud took a moment to recollect his thoughts, having lost himself once again to the past during his narrative, before shaking it off and continuing. "This knowledge was what caused him to kill all those people five years ago, as he was claiming he had to rid the Planet of humans because they had stolen the Planet from Jenova. Now he's back and killing again. He needs to be stopped before he goes too far."

By the time Cloud had finished talking, despair had overtaken what could be seen of the cloaked man's face. He finally lowered his gun and turned his back on the group.

"Leave."

"Huh?" came the spiky blond leader's intelligent reply.

"The information you have given me concerning Sephiroth has added yet another sin for which I must repent." He gracefully lowered himself down into the coffin once more, not once lifting his eyes to look at the group. "I wish you good luck in hunting him down." He closed his eyes as he rested his head down on the satin pillow. "Please leave." As he said this, the coffin's lid flew back from its position on the ground to hide the stranger away from the group.

It took the members of Avalanche a few seconds to realise what had just happened. Yuffie was the first to react to the stranger's odd behaviour.

"Sheesh!" she said rather loudly. "That was rude." She pushed her way to the front of the group and entered the room. Her initial scare at seeing the stranger was finally wearing off and her natural spunkiness had returned full force, much to everyone's disappointment. Brushing past Cloud before he could protest, she stopped beside the coffin and knocked hard on the lid.

"Hey! Vampire-man! You could've at least given us your name, you know!"

Everyone present cringed at hearing her choice of nickname, but she simply ignored them in favour of trying to pry the coffin open with her Shuriken.

"I don't think you should do that Yuffie," said Tifa as she entered the room to stand beside Cloud. "Let the man have his privacy."

"Hey! You're the one who insisted on bringing us down here in this spooky basement without telling us what we were looking for!" exclaimed the young ninja as she continued trying to open the coffin. "That guy nearly gave me a heart attack, so the least he could do is give me his _damn name_!" she cried out that last part, finally giving up on her attempt to open the coffin and giving it a frustrated kick instead.

"You mean you haven't figured it out yet?" asked Tifa as she approached the petite girl.

"Figured what out?" asked Yuffie. Cloud and Barret were just as confused as Yuffie, but apparently Aeris and Red understood what it was Tifa was talking about, as they both had a sad, serious expression on their faces.

Tifa put a hand on her friend's shoulder before responding. "That man," she said quietly, looking down at the coffin beside them, "he was the one that was mentioned in the letter we found earlier."

Yuffie seemed lost at first, before realisation hit her and she did a rather good impression of a fish, eyes round as saucers and her mouth opening and closing a few times. "Oh…" she responded finally, not knowing what else to say. She felt awful for being mad at him. She didn't know what had been done to him since the letter had not been very specific, but she was pretty sure he had gone through hell and back.

'_No wonder he was rude_,' she thought sadly.

There was an awkward silence, before Red decided to speak up. "We should go," he said softly, his eye resting one last time on the coffin before turning to leave.

"Right," said Cloud in agreement. "Come on guys, let's go." He turned to exit the room, quickly followed by Tifa. Yuffie was about to follow suit, but her conscience got the better of her and she knelt down by the coffin. She knocked softly on the lid, wanting to apologise for her behaviour. Much to her surprise, the lid was pushed aside almost immediately and the man sat up, bracing himself up with his human hand as his prosthetic hand rested on the side of the lid. The sudden action had her jumping back in surprise and she landed hard on butt.

"Oww…" she said as she got back up, rubbing her sore behind. Her friends had stopped at the door and were staring at her and the red clad man, who was also watching at her. Feeling uncomfortable apologising in front of them, she glared at her friends and Aeris took the hint, telling the others they should wait farther down the hall, far enough to give the two some privacy but close enough to come rushing in if she needed help.

Yuffie looked back at the stranger who had yet to say anything to her. With Red gone, she had a hard time seeing much of anything, but she didn't need to see to know he was still staring at her. She realised he was probably waiting for an explanation as to why she had disturbed him. Unable to hold the stranger's intense gaze, she opted to look at her feet instead, taking a deep breath as she tried to think of the best way to apologize.

"Hum, hi..." she started awkwardly, not knowing what else to say. "I just wanted to apologize for kicking your coffin and calling you Vampire-man and all that stuff." She looked up briefly to see how he would react. He simply blinked before resuming his silent staring, forcing her to look away again.

"I guess that's all." She was fidgeting, wanting nothing more then to leave the room to escape the man's scrutiny. "I'll stop bothering you now, so you can lie back down in that coffin of yours and sleep or whatever." She started to move towards the door before turning one last time. "Sorry again, mister," she added hastily before heading out the door. Just as she entered the corridor, a low voice stopped her in her tracks.

"Wait." She turned around to find the stranger standing a few steps in front of her. She resisted the urge to back away from him and waited to see what he wanted.

"Vincent Valentine," he said simply after a few seconds of silence, causing Yuffie to flinch slightly.

"What?" asked the girl, not sure what that name meant.

"You wanted to know my name," he replied coolly. "Your name is Yuffie, correct?" Yuffie simply nodded, guessing he had overheard Tifa say her name earlier. "I apologize for my rudeness towards you and your friends, Yuffie."

The usually talkative ninja found herself at a loss for words. She just couldn't think straight with him staring at her. He was just so intimidating. '_Stupid, stupid, stupid brain! Come on Yuffie, say something, anything!_' It took her a few seconds to get her brain in gear long enough to responded with "Hum, ok?"

He raised an eyebrow at her before she hurriedly added, "No, wait! I mean thank you for your apology." This was followed by another awkward moment of silence, before she spoke again. "Well, I guess this is goodbye. Nice meeting you, Vincent Valentine," she said blushing with embarrassment before rushing out to join her friends, not waiting for his response.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

Vincent watched the girl rush down the dark hall to join her group. Entering the room once more, his gaze rested on the coffin. By what Cloud had told him, he estimated he had been asleep for quite some time, probably over 25 years. Of course, there was a slim chance that the Sephiroth Cloud had talked about was not the same as Lucrecia's child, but he doubted it. A pang of loss shot through his heart as he reminisced about her. Briefly, he contemplated laying back into the coffin and return to his previous nightmare filled slumber, but he knew doing so would not solve any of his problems.

He looked down at his clawed hand, flexing it. Even in the near-complete darkness, Vincent found he had no trouble seeing. Bringing up his claw for closer inspection, he wondered what else had been done to him since he had last been awake. Seeing his reflection in the smooth golden metal of his claw, he was surprised to find that his once blue eyes were now a deep crimson. Lowering his cape with his human hand, he inspected the rest of his face, noticing he had not aged at all. Finally he opened his mouth, already knowing what he would find there. Instead of short, blunt human canines, he now had long sharp fangs. Having already bitten his tongue twice since waking up, he was not surprised by this finding.

'_It seems Yuffie had been right in calling me a vampire after all_,' he thought to himself humourlessly, hiding his lower face once more behind his cloak.

So many questions needed to be answered, and he knew his best chance to do so was to join the group, Avalanche, in their search for Sephiroth. He knew he was too late to save Lucrecia's son, but by following the group, he may find the man responsible for Sephiroth's tragic fall from grace. Perhaps in doing so, he would finally be able to avenge his lover and himself.

Having come to a decision, Vincent exited the room and quickly made his way down the dark hall, his cloak gliding silently behind him.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

The group had left as soon as Yuffie had joined them. Halfway down the corridor, Aeris slowed her pace to wait for Yuffie, who had been trailing behind. "So, what did the two of you talk about?" asked Aeris with a smile, wasting no time in tormenting her friend.

"Nothing," replied the ninja hastily.

Aeris's smile grew even wider at seeing her friend's discomfort. "The way you were blushing when you came back tells me it wasn't _nothing_."

"_What_?" exclaimed Yuffie, her eyes widening in surprise and outrage. "It wasn't anything like _that_! I just apologized and he told me his name, that's all! Besides, I think he's kinda creepy…"

"Oh." Aeris sounded a little disappointed, but did not let it show on her face. "So, what's his name?"

"Vincent Valentine," answered a masculine voice from behind the girls.

Both girls shrieked in fright and the whole group whirled around to face them, much to Vincent's amusement.

Recognising the stalker as being the man from the coffin, Cloud walked up to him, wondering why he had followed them when he had made it clear he wanted to be left alone.

"If I come with you, is there a chance we may encounter a man named Hojo?" asked Vincent to the spiky haired man in front of him.

"Hojo? You mean that sick Shinra scientist?" asked Cloud, rubbing the back of his neck. "Yeah, there's a good chance we might meet him again sometime soon." He looked back briefly at the rest of the group before continuing. "I don't have any problems in letting you come with us if the others are alright with this. The more help we have in stopping Sephiroth, the better." Although the group did not seem overly thrilled about their leader's decision, none of them voiced their objections. "Alright then! You're now the newest member of Avalanche."

He turned to the rest of the group and resumed his position in the lead. "Let's go!" The group followed their leader towards the basement's exit, their newest comrade silently trailing behind them just outside the ring of light.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

**Author's note: **_Wow, this turned out to be a bigger chapter then I had expected. I really hope you guys like it. Unfortunately, I probably won't be able to write a new chapter anytime soon, as I am currently swamped with exams and projects. I'll try to get one out within 2 or 3 weeks tops, but I can't promise you guys anything. As always, don't be shy to leave a review, I'm really curious to know if people are interested in this story. _


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII. Final Fantasy 7, the storyline and its characters belong solely to Square-Enix. **

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

**Chapter 4**

"Cloud! Are you alright?" Tifa rushed to her childhood friend's side. He had collapsed without warning moments earlier as the group reached the spiralling staircase and was now kneeling in the dust covered floor holding his head with both hands, apparently in a lot of pain.

"What's wrong with him?" asked the young ninja nervously, alarmed by Cloud's odd behaviour. She stood alongside Barret and Aeris a few paces away from the two crouching figures. Red XIII paced about the width of the corridor, his hair standing on end as they watched Tifa trying unsuccessfully to get an answer from their leader.

Vincent was standing further back, seemingly unfazed by the sudden turn of events. In fact, Barret noticed distractedly, the man's attention seemed to be directed to the dark hallway from which they had just emerged. As if sensing someone was watching him, Vincent locked eyes with Barret, making him shift uncomfortably and look away.

"Damn weirdo…" mumbled Barret under his breath, earning him an odd look from Yuffie and Aeris. Having missed the exchange between Barret and Vincent, they both assumed the comment had something to do with Cloud.

Barret ignored them in favour of watching Cloud, who seemed to be getting worst by the second. His hands were fisted in his hair, his eyes were screwed shut and his breathing was laboured. He seemed unaware of his surroundings, despite Tifa's best efforts to get him to notice her.

"Please Cloud, what's wrong?" Tifa tried shaking his shoulders, but Cloud was still unresponsive. She looked up briefly as Aeris approached her.

"Cloud, can you hear us?" Aeris knelt down beside Tifa and was now facing their leader, worry etched all over her face. She reached out and placed her small hands over his, trying to soothe him anyway she could. Much to everyone's surprise this seemed to do the trick, as he finally opened his eyes.

"…Aeris?"

She nodded, relieved to hear him speak. Both girls helped him back on his feet, since he was still feeling a bit dizzy and disoriented.

"What happened?" It was Red XIII who asked the question burning on everyone's lips.

"I…" Cloud started, frowning in concentration. He was having trouble figuring out what had just happened. "I… I don't…" He suddenly went rigid, his face darkening as he uttered a single name. "…Sephiroth!" Without further explanation, Cloud rushed back down the hall, followed closely by Red and Vincent. The others had little choice but to follow after them.

"Did he… _huff_… just say... _huff_… _huff_… what I think he said?" asked Barret, panting hard from trying to keep up with the group.

"He said something about Sephiroth…" answered Tifa, running a few paces in front of Barret.

"Oh my Gawd! You don't suppose _he_'s here, do you?" cried Yuffie, her face bleaching at the thought of having to face the demented General.

"Cloud must have sensed his presence earlier," said Aeris, who was trying not to trip over her long dress while running. She had to pull it up over her knees in order to run faster. "That would explain what happened to him a minute ago."

"Everyone, get ready!" yelled Red over his shoulder. He had slowed his pace in order for the group to catch up to him. "I can smell Sephiroth up ahead!" He then sprinted after Cloud and Vincent, both men having disappeared down another corridor.

"_Shit_…" muttered Barret breathlessly, taking the safety off his gun without slowing.

The three girls said nothing as they prepared their weapons, although they silently agreed with Barret's remark.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

Vincent watched Cloud from the corner of his eye as they hurried down the corridor. The cat-like creature named Red had slowed in order to warn the others of the upcoming danger, and both men were now basically running in near complete darkness, making Vincent briefly wonder if Cloud could see just as well as he could in the dark.

He banished that thought as they neared the end of the hallway, knowing he needed to concentrate on the situation at hand. He followed the spiky haired leader as he turned left down yet another corridor, seemingly knowing exactly where he was going. Vincent had little doubt about their destination. They were heading straight for the library.

Vincent had suspected someone else was in the mansion for some time now, even before Cloud had collapsed near the basement exit. He had been hearing footsteps, muffled by thick walls and distance. At first he thought it was only his imagination playing tricks on him since none of the others seemed to hear anything, not even Red. After Cloud had collapsed however, he knew it wasn't just his imagination. He had distinctly heard someone laughing, the sound of it echoing through the halls until it reached his ears. And by the way that dark skinned man – _'What was his name... Barret?' _– had looked at him he doubted any of the others had heard it.

By the time Red caught up with them again, they were nearing the door leading to the library. Cloud had sped up, completely intent on reaching whoever was beyond that door. Vincent watched as Cloud released his massive sword from his back with practiced ease, while he himself readied his gun. The three finally slowed to a halt as they reached the door at the end of the hall. Cloud opened the door cautiously and they silently entered the first room of the library.

The white, artificial lighting of the room contrasted violently with the darkness in the hallway, blinding them temporarily, but Vincent could tell none-the-less that they were not alone. He could hear someone moving around in the second part of the library. It seemed that whoever he was, he had been expecting them and was now waiting for the group to come to him.

After a few seconds, the rest of the group finally caught up to them, their footsteps and heavy breathing betraying their arrival. After they had all adjusted to the difference in lighting, Cloud took a few footsteps towards the corridor leading to the second part of the library. As the others moved to follow, Cloud stopped and shot a glance over his shoulder.

"Wait here," ordered the ex-soldier sternly. Of course, the other members of Avalanche were more then a little confused by this. "This is something I need to do alone." Before any of them could protest, he sprinted forward and disappeared into the next room.

"Shouldn't we follow?" asked Yuffie after a moment. It was apparent to Vincent that the young girl was scared and didn't _really_ want to follow, but was still concerned enough about their leader to ask anyway.

"I think we should do as Cloud asked and wait for him here." After saying this, Tifa walked over to a table in the middle of the room and sat on it, her long legs swinging under the table. As if on cue, the others scattered about the room, trying to find suitable places to wait for their leader. They looked nonchalant enough, but Vincent was not fooled. His years as a Turk had taught him a thing or two about body language, and he could tell right away by how tense they were that should their leader be in trouble, they would be by his side and ready to fight in a matter of seconds.

Vincent felt rather uneasy about this room, and so he chose to lean against the doorframe leading out of the library. His memories were still a little fuzzy after having slept for so long, but he was positive something horrible had happened here. Something to do with Hojo…

Vincent listened closely to the sounds coming from the next room, unsure whether or not the others could hear what was happening. He knew that after his initial sprint, Cloud had slowed down upon entering the second part of the library. He and the other man, Sephiroth he assumed, were now talking together, but Vincent was too distracted to pay attention. His red gaze was focused on a discoloration on the floor, a mere two feet from where Barret was standing. Something about that discoloration felt _wrong_. It looked as if something had pooled there and dried a long time ago. Something like… like…

"Blood…" he whispered, finally recognising the dried substance staining the dusty stones. The others looked at him curiously, but he barely noticed them. He felt as if he was going to be sick. The blood stain had triggered a memory, and he understood now why he felt so uncomfortable being in this room. The blood he had been staring at was his own. _His blood_. This was where he should have died, all those years ago.

Vincent had to close his eyes for a moment, in order to fight the nausea. If not for the doorframe supporting him, he was sure he would have crumbled to the ground by now. Slowly, his head stopped spinning and Vincent regained some of his composure. With his eyes still closed, he started reminiscing about the events of that ill fated day, still so very fresh to him, as if they had happened the day before.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

He remembered how angry he had felt that day when he had found his beloved Lucrecia passed out on her bedroom floor, the detrimental effects of the Jenova cells on the pregnant mother's health now more evident then ever. He had known for some time that she hadn't been feeling well, but she had made it clear to him not to interfere with the experiment.

After picking her up from the floor and placing her gently onto the bed, Vincent came to a decision. He would confront professor Gast and Hojo when they returned that night from the reactor on Mount Nibel and demand that they stop this nonsense immediately. He felt especially angry with Hojo for allowing this experiment to continue when it was so easy to see how harmful it was to Lucrecia. After all, she was_ his wife_.

When Lucrecia had awakened an hour later, he had explained his intentions to her. At first she begged him to reconsider, saying that her poor health had nothing to do with the experiment, but she soon realized he wasn't one to be fooled and finally agreed with him. She admitted to him that she had been thinking about stopping the experiment for a while now, but had lacked the courage to face her husband about it. Vincent knew how irrational Hojo could be when it came to the Jenova projet, and could not blame her for fearing his reaction.

Vincent had helped Lucrecia pack her bags that evening. He arranged for her to spend the night at the Nibelheim inn, where he would meet her the following morning after he had taken care of business here. From there, he would call his boss in Midgar and have someone pick them up. The further they got from Nibelheim and the Jenova project, the better.

Vincent hoped that maybe, once in Midgar, Lucrecia would finally leave Hojo and accept to marry him. They had been having an affair for months, sneaking around at night when everyone was asleep. When he had proposed to her the first time, she had refused out of guilt. She had just found out she was pregnant with Hojo's child and had decided to try and work things out with her husband. She ended the affair that very night. Vincent was disappointed, but as long as she was happy, he didn't mind.

However, things only got worst for Lucrecia. Hojo had been ecstatic about Lucrecia's pregnancy, but for all the wrong reasons. He proposed they inject Jenova cells into Lucrecia's womb, to see if they could create an Ancient by doing so. Wanting to please her husband, she had agreed, and with Gast's approval, the experiment had started.

Lucrecia had thought that by participating in this, she and Hojo could spend more time together and rekindle what was left of their dying love. Unfortunately, it seemed to have the opposite effect. From the moment they had started experimenting on her unborn child, Hojo grew cold and distant. He cared only for the project, treating his wife as if she were nothing more then a guinea pig. Vincent had been furious, but powerless to stop any of this from happening. Until now.

Hojo returned alone that night. Gast had apparently left to investigate some rumours concerning an Ancient near Icicle Inn and would be gone for at least two weeks, with no ways to communicate with him. This complicated things somewhat since it was Gast, not Hojo, who had the final say when it came to the Jenova project. Vincent couldn't afford to wait two weeks for Gast to return, and so for Lucrecia's sake, he decided to go forward with his plan none-the-less.

'_One way or another_,' thought Vincent bitterly as he made his way down to the basement, '_it ends tonight…_'

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

"_Woah!_ Watch out!"

"_Dammit_!"

"He's getting away!!"

Still caught up in the past, it took a moment for Vincent to recognise the voices of his new companions. Vincent's eyes snapped open in time to see a black clad man fly towards the exit, apparently having no trouble evading his would-be captors as they tried desperately to stop the fleeing man. As he ran past him, Vincent caught a glimpse of the man's face and froze.

'_His face… He looks just like his mother… Lucrecia…_'

"Vincent!! Don't let him get away!!" Cloud's voice shocked Vincent out of his daze and into action. In one graceful movement, he pushed himself away from the doorframe and into the dark hallway, rushing to catch up with the dark figure up ahead.

He could hear Cloud running right behind him, with the rest of the group following further back. As fast as they were, Vincent soon realized Sephiroth was much faster. He was getting away. Without thinking, Vincent crouched low, digging his metal tipped shoes as best he could into the stones to gain more leverage. He leapt forward at an incredible speed, his feet barely touching the ground as he went. With a few powerful strides, he left Cloud behind and was quickly gaining on Sephiroth.

Unfortunately for him, Sephiroth took notice of this and threw something towards Vincent without ever slowing. Vincent just barely managed to dodge the speeding projectile, but in doing so he lost his balance and was forced to slow down in order to regain it. Vincent stopped entirely when he heard a pained cry and the sound of someone falling behind him.

He turned around and saw Cloud crouched on the floor with a pained look on his face. He had dropped his sword in favour of holding his bloody nose, vainly trying to slow the bleeding. A small, round object rolled to a stop at Vincent's feet, which he promptly picked up. A smile tugged at his lips when he realized exactly what he was holding. It seemed Cloud had been brought to his knees by a small, harmless materia.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

By the time the other members of Avalanche caught up with Cloud and Vincent, it was clear that Sephiroth had escaped them again. Cloud seemed overly pissed by this and was in no mood to answer any of their questions. He was especially dodgy when it came to his bloody nose, and it was Vincent who finally informed the group about what it was they had missed.

"Gawd!! I still can't believe Sephiroth pelted you with a materia!!" This was the ninth time Yuffie had said this while on their way up, her face red and streaked with mirthful tears from laughing so much. This of course only resulted in Cloud ignoring her and walking faster. He really, _really_, didn't see anything funny about any of this. Everyone else seemed to think otherwise, unfortunately. Even Red XIII had chuckled upon hearing what had befallen their leader's nose. The only one besides Cloud who didn't seem to find this funny was Vincent, although Cloud had to admit it was hard to tell since half his face was hidden.

"Yo Cloud! Lighten up, will ya? You gotta admit it's kinda funny." Barret was laughing just as hard as Yuffie. He calmed down long enough to wipe a tear from the corner of his eye. "Besides, who would've thought you'd be brought down by a tiny thing like that?"

Tifa and Aeris were having a hard time trying not to laugh, but couldn't prevent a few snickers from escaping their lips from time to time. It was simply too funny watching Yuffie and Barret make fun of Cloud, and even funnier to watch Cloud as he tried to ignore them, clearly angry. It was hard to take him seriously with his nose all red and swelled to twice its normal size. He almost looked like a clown, not that anyone was ever going to tell him. No one except maybe…

"Hey Cloud! What happened to your nose? You look like some kind of clown!" This was Cait Sith's first comment as Cloud entered the upstairs bedroom. The other members of Avalanche quickly moved away from him, since he looked just about ready to explode. Oblivious to his leader's bad mood, Cait continued being his ever loud and annoying self, until he spotted Vincent stepping out from the shadows.

"WOAH!! Watch out you guys!! There's a vampire on the loose!!"

Everyone watched as Vincent froze where he stood. He blinked once, twice, before he simply stated that he was _not_ a vampire and walked out of the room.

As soon as Vincent walked out, Cloud burst into laughter, alleviating some of the tension in the group. Soon, everyone was laughing except Cait Sith, who was looking at them as if they had all gone crazy. Personally, he didn't find the concept of a vampire denying it was a vampire all that funny.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

Vincent could still hear them laughing as he made his way to the first floor. He had been awake and in their company for less then an hour, but already he could feel the beginnings of a headache, the dull throbbing behind his eyes promising to grow worst with time. This, he decided, was going to be a very, _very_, long trip.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

**A.N.: **_I am so, so sorry for not posting a chapter earlier. It's been what…nearly two months since I've posted chapter 3? Dear Gods! I hope no one gave up hope on this story. From now on, I promise to post a new chapter _at least_ once every two weeks. It's going to be a lot easier for me to find time to write since this semester should be a lot less busy then the last one. _

_Special thanx to _Kikino_ and _Dragonlady2000-15_ for being the first to review my story. Reading your reviews made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. No wonder so many authors out there are addicted to reviews! _XD

_As for everyone out there reading this story and not reviewing, I suppose I can't blame you since I'm probably one of the worst people out there when it comes to not reviewing stories I read. Still, if you feel like letting me know what you think of this story, by all means do so. I promise you, the review button on the bottom of this screen isn't going to bite you. Really. _


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII. Final Fantasy 7, the storyline and its characters belong solely to Square-Enix. **

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

**Chapter 5**

Soon after sunrise, the group had left the Shinra mansion. According to Cloud, Sephiroth had informed him that he was heading north past Mount Nibel for the Reunion and that they should follow. Cloud intended to do just that, but Tifa insisted they backtrack to Nibelheim first in order to get some supplies. She knew how dangerous that monster infested mountain was. Attempting to cross the mountain with their meagre supplies would be suicidal.

Cloud wanted to go after Sephiroth immediately, before he got too much of a head start, but knew better then to refute Tifa's advice and so had agreed to the detour.

Once in Nibelheim, they had split up into two groups in order to save time. Vincent, Tifa and Barret went to the weapons shop to buy ammo for the two gunmen while the rest of the group went to the items shop for food and other necessities. Everything was going smoothly, much to Cloud's surprise. He had expected a lot more fussing from his friends about their trek through the mountain, but up until now they had been blissfully silent about it.

Of course with Yuffie around, such moments of peace and quiet are often short-lived…

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

"What do you mean _we can't take the Buggy_!?!"

The clerk in the items shop stared at the small girl standing near the counter, her sudden outburst having momentarily distracted him from his chores. A well placed glare from the irate girl had the young man squirming with unease and looking away, opting instead to continue mopping the floor of all the mud the small group had trekked inside. The rain had stopped a few hours prior, but unfortunately for the poor clerk, the roads had been left very muddy by the downpour.

"There is no way in hell I'm walking all the way to Mount What's-its-name!!"

"Yuffie calm down, there's no need to get angry over this," replied Aeris in a soothing matter, trying to appease the young ninja in front of her.

"But…"

"Aeris is right," it was Red who spoke this time, looking up at Yuffie from his sitting position next to Aeris. He then turned to Cloud. "Although I am also a little curious as to why you would have us walk all the way to Mount Nibel instead of taking the Buggy."

"Because we _can't_." Cloud was leaning heavily on the counter, frowning slightly as he said this. He was trying his best not to snap at the irritating girl since doing so would only make things worse. He resisted the urge to rub the bridge of his nose, knowing full well that doing so would hurt like hell. Most of the damage from the materia Sephiroth had thrown him had been thankfully undone by a Cure spell, but his nose was still quite sore. This, along with the splitting headache Yuffie was giving him, only added to his irritation.

He was tired; they all were. Their night spent in the Shinra mansion had been anything but restful, leaving them cranky and on edge. He understood perfectly why Yuffie would be so upset by the prospect of hiking up to Mount Nibel on foot, but did the girl really have to be so _loud_ about it?

"Riiiight…" Yuffie rolled her eyes at Cloud. "So let me get this straight… We're walking in the mud all the way to that big ass mountain today just 'cause you say so?"

"_Yuffie_…" Cloud was about to add something, but decided against it. Taking a deep breath, he headed for the door just as Tifa, Barret and Vincent walked into the store.

"Hey Cloud," greeted Tifa cheerfully as he approached the door. "We're done buying the ammo. What about you guys?"

He simply brushed past her without answering and pushed the door open.

"Cloud?" Her voice had lost most of its cheeriness. She realised something must have happened in their absence, since everyone seemed so tense. "Hey! Where are you going?"

"Out," answered Cloud's retreating form as he stepped outside, the door closing behind him.

"The hell's his problem?" asked Barret to no one in particular, scratching his head.

"Why don't ya ask Yuffie here?" answered Cait Sith, staring pointedly at the girl in question. Yuffie stuck out her tongue at the mechanical cat, to which he responded in a similar fashion.

"Yuffie?" asked Tifa, gaining the girl's attention. "What happened?"

"I'll tell you what happened! Chocobo-Head out there wants us to leave the Buggy here and walk across Mount Nibel!" answered Yuffie in a huff, her small fist resting on her narrow hips a sure sign of her annoyance. "I mean, what's the use of having the Buggy if we can't even use it? Sheesh…"

Tifa sighed, finally understanding why Cloud had left in such a hurry. He'd needed a time out from Yuffie. The girl meant well, but she had this way of getting under people's skin sometimes. Especially when she jumped to conclusions too quickly like she had just now.

"I'm afraid I have to agree with Cloud," said Tifa. "We can't take the Buggy…"

"WHAT?!? Not you too!!"

"Let me explain," said Tifa hurriedly before Yuffie could cut her off again. "I've been to those mountains more times then I can count and I can tell you right now that if we take the Buggy, we'll get stuck in the mud in less than ten minutes. And even if we did somehow make it to the base of Mount Nibel with the Buggy, there's no way we can drive that thing up and inside the mountain. It's just not possible."

"Oh…" replied Yuffie with a frown, crossing her arms in front of her. At least now she knew why Cloud had insisted they walk, but that didn't mean she had to like it.

"I think I should go talk to him," said Aeris after hearing Tifa's explanation. "I'll try to get him to calm down while you guys finish up here."

Tifa watched as her friend left after Cloud, trying her best to keep a smile in place. She then redirected her attention to the huge pile of stuff her friends had placed on the counter. Most of it would be useless for their stay on the mountain, not to mention bothersome to carry.

Walking up to the counter, Tifa started sorting the pile out in order to keep only what they really needed, with some 'help' from the others. Really, the only ones actually helping were Vincent and Red. The others were being counterproductive, arguing over what they considered to be _important_ stuff to bring.

"Hey! Why are you taking that out?" Cait Sith grabbed the object Tifa had taken from the pile and placed it back on the counter.

"Because we don't need it, Cait," answered Tifa with a small sigh, taking the object again to return it to its rightful place on the shelf.

"Of course we need it! How else will we be able to make waffles if we don't have a waffle-maker?" Cait went to jump on the shelf to retrieve the object in question but was stopped midair when Barret grabbed him by the tail. "Hey! Let go!"

"Ha! Serves you right you dumb doll!" Yuffie smiled widely at the robot, gloating in the fact that she wasn't the one being reprimanded for once. "Besides, how useful can an _electric_ waffle-maker be in the wilderness?"

"I suppose as useful as all those materia you wanted to buy, since Tifa is setting them aside as we speak," answered Cait, grinning widely at Yuffie from his upside-down position.

"_WHAT_?!?"

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

Two hours after they had first left the Shinra mansion, the group was finally on its way towards mount Nibel. By then, the sky had cleared completely of clouds and the sun's hot rays were beaming down, making everyone uncomfortable in the heat and humidity. Everyone but Vincent. He barely seemed affected by the uncomfortable conditions.

Vincent was trailing quietly after the group of mismatched friends he had somehow wound up with. From his position in the rear, the gunman took the time to observe how they interacted together, trying to learn as much as he could about his new team mates. From what little he had observed up to now, he already knew quite a few things about the group.

Cloud was the leader of the group; that much was obvious. Ever since their run-in with Sephiroth earlier that day, Vincent wondered what connection Cloud might have with Lucrecia's son. Cloud seemed almost obsessed with Sephiroth, with whom he evidently shared some sort of bond. Despite that, Vincent already held a lot of respect for the young man. He seemed well-rounded enough and his team mates accepted his leadership without question, treating him with due respect regardless of his young age.

Well, everyone except for Yuffie. It seemed as though the girl didn't even know the meaning of the word respect, which Vincent found rather surprising considering she was obviously from Wutai, where respect was held in high regards.

He didn't think she was a bad kid; far from it. She just seemed a bit misguided. He wondered if perhaps she had been cast out from Wutai, or if she had simply ran away. She seemed awfully young to be left out on her own, but that would explain how she had ended up travelling with a group of rebels such as Avalanche, not to mention her kleptomaniac tendencies. He hadn't missed how she had stuffed her pockets with some materia from the shop when she thought no one was looking. Not that it mattered much to him. As long as she didn't try to steal from him or from the rest of the group, he didn't care what she did.

The other two girls in the group, Tifa and Aeris, seemed a lot calmer then Yuffie. The two of them were obviously close friends; they hadn't stopped chatting with one another since the group had left Nibelheim behind.

Tifa appeared to be the most level-headed person in the group other than Red, as well as the strongest of the three girls. Vincent could tell that she cared a lot about her leader and that she knew some things about Cloud that the others probably didn't, which would explain why she always seemed so overly concerned about him.

Aeris looked to be the eldest of all three girls. When Vincent had first laid eyes on her, he had mistakenly labelled her as shy on account of the way she was dressed. He knew now that he had misjudged her. Far from shy, the girl was very talkative and friendly, getting along with everyone easily. She had a kind heart and loved to make people smile. Her own smile was probably one of the most lovely he had seen in his life, other than Lucrecia's. Like Tifa, she seemed to have a soft spot for Cloud.

Walking in the lead with Cloud was Barret, who kept turning around from time to time to glare at him. It was obvious Barret didn't like him and truthfully, Vincent didn't care much for the large man either. The gun-armed man was a bit too volatile for his taste. He supposed he couldn't blame Barret for not trusting him though, since he had in fact levelled a gun at them on their first meeting. Not exactly the best way to make friends.

Vincent found that of all the members of Avalanche, the one he trusted the most was Red XIII. The strange creature seemed honest and wise, as well as loyal and reliable. He didn't talk much, unlike most of the members in Avalanche. Instead he seemed to prefer listening to those around him, only talking when he felt it necessary for him to do so. Those were qualities Vincent respected.

As for the last member of Avalanche, Vincent didn't know what to think of it. He found the strange robot, Cait Sith, to be loud and obnoxious, not to mention useless. What in the world was that thing doing travelling with Avalanche?

All in all, the small group seemed tight-knit, regardless of how different they were. How they had all ended up together was something Vincent had yet to find out, but in the end it didn't really matter. For now at least, they all shared a similar goal, and that was all he needed to know, really. So long as they led him to Hojo and they didn't get in his way in the process, Vincent would follow.

Vincent wondered what he would do after he had avenged his sweet Lucrecia's death. It was his only reason for following the group, really. He didn't plan on befriending any of them, not that they would want his friendship anyway. Apart from Cloud, they were all cautious and wary when near him, not to mention a little frightened. Most likely, he would leave the group once Hojo was dead.

The gunman was distracted from his train of thought when Cloud informed the group they would be stopping to eat. Vincent was a little surprised by this since he wasn't hungry in the least. Surely it wasn't already noon, was it? A quick check on the sun's position in the sky conformed that it was indeed noontime.

"About time, I'm famished!" whined Yuffie as she dropped her bag and Shuriken on a large rock to the side of the road before sitting herself on the aforementioned rock.

"Same here," agreed Barret, taking a sip from his canteen of water.

While the group was busy preparing the area so they could eat, Vincent found refuge in the shade of a tree not too far from the road. He wasn't hungry and didn't feel like sitting down with them, so instead he leaned against the base of the tree with his arms crossed, intent on remaining there until they were ready to leave once more.

"Aren't you going to join us, Vincent?" asked Tifa after she and Barret had finished laying down a tarp for them to sit on and eat without getting wet. Aeris and Cloud had started giving out sandwiches to everyone. "There's more than enough food to go around, if you're hungry."

"I'm not hungry," answered Vincent a little too abruptly. "Thank you for the offer nonetheless," he added almost as an afterthought, not wanting to offend the girl.

"Ok then," said Tifa with a smile. "But if you do get hungry, don't be shy to ask." She then returned to her friends in order to eat, leaving Vincent alone once more with his thoughts.

He watched as everyone settled down to eat happily, making small talk in between each mouthful. Seeing them like this reminded him of a memory from long ago, back when he was still happy.

He remembered how Lucrecia had somehow caught him dozing off under a tree during a hot summer day similar to this one. He'd apologised immediately, having only been at the mansion for two weeks and fearing that this would cost him his job. Lucrecia had simply waved off his apologies, stating it was too much of a nice day to be working anyway, and invited him to join her for a picnic. He'd been surprised by this, since he knew her to be married. Why would she want to have a picnic with him instead of her husband? Vincent hadn't cared to ask. They'd ended up spending the entire evening together, talking and laughing together under that tree until finally Hojo came looking for Lucrecia.

That was the day Vincent first fell in love with her…

It had happened so long ago… Never again would he see her radiant face, or hear her lovely voice. Oh, how he wished he could see her one last time. He'd tell her how sorry he was for having failed to save her. He would tell her how every second that went by without her sweet presence by his side felt like an eternity in hell. But most importantly, he would tell her how much he loved her…

He had lost everything, all because of that four-eyed scientist and his twisted ambitions.

'Hojo…' Simply thinking of him made his blood boil. Vincent couldn't wait to get his hands on the sick bastard. He was going to pay dearly for what he did to her… He would rip that little weasel to shreds with the very same claw the madman had given him. He'd tear him apart slowly, limb by excruciating limb, until he begged to die. The little runt would suffer for his sins against Lucrecia. He would see to that.

Vincent saw red for a moment, blinded by his rage. He clenched his teeth tightly, his lip curling up into a silent snarl as he attempted to gain some control over his anger. He was glad for the concealment of his cape's high collar; otherwise he would have surely frightened his companions with the sight of his elongated fangs. Vincent took a few deep breaths, trying to calm himself down, until finally the red haze in front of his eyes disappeared completely. Vincent sighed in relief, his eyes drifting close for a moment.

"Vincent, are you all right?" Vincent's head snapped up to see Cloud standing a few feet in front of him. The rest of the group weren't paying attention to the two men; they were too busy getting ready to leave.

"You're shaking."

Vincent realized that he was indeed shaking, but couldn't find a suitable answer to give the man in front of him. How was he supposed to tell him that he had nearly lost control a moment ago and let loose the unspeakable evil lurking in his mind? How was he supposed to tell him that he was shaking because he was frightened of himself? He couldn't tell the truth, so he settled on lying.

"I'm fine," he answered coldly, trying to discourage Cloud from asking any further questions. With some effort, Vincent was finally able to stop his limbs from shaking.

Cloud didn't seem convinced by the answer he'd been given, but to Vincent's relief he simply shrugged it off. Apparently the young man had enough sense to know he didn't want to talk about it.

"Alright then," said Cloud as if nothing had happened. "Just so you know, we'll be leaving as soon as we've finished packing everything up. It shouldn't take more then five minutes." He then returned to his friend's side in order to help them pack.

Vincent couldn't believe his carelessness. He'd endangered everyone by letting his emotions rule him. How could he have forgotten so quickly about his little 'demon problem'?

The others had finished packing he noticed, and so he moved to join them.

"Everyone ready?" asked Cloud, to which everyone nodded. "Great! Let's get moving. We're gonna have to hurry if we want to make it to the base of Mount Nibel before nightfall."

As soon as he said this Cloud started walking, taking the lead as he always did. The others followed quickly after their leader, Vincent bringing up the rear once more.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

The next few hours were mostly uneventful. As the day went by and the air grew warmer, conversation in the group had waned. Even Yuffie had stopped complaining about how 'horrendously' hot it was when it became clear to her that no one was listening. As for Cait Sith, he had apparently shut down, his moogle following the group silently while he sat completely still on top of it. The robot did this from time to time, mostly when they traveled for long distances or at night when the others slept.

The valley in which the group was travelling had narrowed down significantly in the last hour or so. Flanked by mountains on both sides, the group was about to enter the canyon leading up to Mount Nibel.

"Shade at last!" Yuffie couldn't resist expressing her relief out loud as the canyon's high walls shielded them from the sun. "It must be like a gazillion degrees out there! Any longer and I would have _died_ for sure! Can you imagine? The Great Ninja Yuffie Kisaragi found dead, cooked to a crisp by the sun!"

Of course, Yuffie was a far cry from dieing as she so claimed. Being out of the sun had apparently re-energized the attention craved ninja, much to everyone's chagrin. Too tired to acknowledge the girl's antics, they simply ignored her.

"You guys are really boring, ya know!"

"…"

"I know!! Lets all play 'I Spy'!! I'll go first. I spy with my little eye… something pink!!"

No one answered.

"Come on you guys! It's an easy one! Ok let me give you another clue! It's…"

"Yuffie." The girl in question was interrupted by Red XIII. "Perhaps we could play this game another time, when everyone is rested."

"But I'm so booored!!" Yuffie kicked an unsuspecting rock, trying to vent off some of her frustration. It didn't work. "We've been walking for hours! How much longer 'til we get to that stupid mountain?"

"We still have a few more hours to go," answered Tifa.

"_A few more hours_?! Gawd!! That's gonna take us forever!!"

Yuffie kicked another rock, only this time the rock didn't budge. "Ouch!" she said while holding on to her injured foot. "Can we stop for a minute? That stupid rock hurt my foot!" She glared at the rock in question as if willing it to disappear.

"Walk it off, Yuffie." Cloud didn't even slow down or turn to face the girl as he said this.

"But it really hurts…" Yuffie was putting on quite a show of limping and moaning. It really didn't hurt that much, but Yuffie was tired of walking and wanted to stop for a while. Not to mention she was bored. Really, _really_ bored… Maybe if the others thought she was injured they'd finally pay some attention to her…

Of course, the fact that she was limping on the wrong foot kind of ruined any chance she had of fooling the others. She dropped the charade after a moment; clearly she needed to find something else to do to pass the time.

She looked around until her gaze finally settled on the lone gunslinger in the back of the group. Everyone else seemed unwilling to talk to her at the moment, so she figured she might as well try her luck with mister tall dark and spooky back there. After all, he looked just as bored as she did. Plus she had this question that had been nagging at the back of her mind all day…

Yuffie slowed her pace and waited until Vincent caught up with her. She was walking by his side now, but he had yet to acknowledge her presence. She waited a full minute so see if he would say something, but he just kept on walking in silence. Since Vincent didn't seem too keen on starting a conversation anytime soon, Yuffie figured she'd have to be the one to start. Usually this wouldn't be a problem for the talkative ninja, but somehow she had forgotten just how intimidated she felt around him.

Vincent's red gaze finally settled on the girl walking next to him with a questioning look in his eyes. Yuffie blushed, realising that she had been caught staring. She had to say something quick, before things got even more awkward.

"So, hum… Nice day, huh Vincent?" asked Yuffie, not knowing how else to start this conversation with Vincent.

At first Vincent said nothing. He stared forward again, his expression unreadable to the teenager. Thinking he wasn't going to answer her, Yuffie was about to say something else when she was startled by the sound of his baritone voice.

"… I suppose it is a nice day."

Yuffie was a little surprised when he answered her. It wasn't much of an answer, but at least he was talking to her. She had honestly thought it would take a lot more pestering from her part to get him talking.

"Well, I think it's a nice day too, except for the heat. I'm only wearing shorts and a tank top and I'm still sweating like a pig." She pulled at her sweat drenched shirt clinging to her form to emphasise her point. She then eyed the gunman's clothing. "Boy, you must be _really_ hot in all that getup! But then again, it doesn't look as if you're sweating at all."

Yuffie waited a few seconds for her companion to say something. When he didn't, she simply continued talking. "Speaking of getup, why are you hiding under that mouldy old cape? It makes you look really creepy ya know, especially with that all black suit you're wearing. Do you dress like that just to scare people or are you some kind of Goth or something? And what's the deal with that nasty-looking claw thingy? Is it for real or just some sort of glove?"

Vincent raised an eyebrow at the girl, apparently trying to decipher whatever Yuffie had just asked him since she had said all this in one breath. In the end it didn't really matter if he understood or not since Yuffie never gave her companion a chance to answer.

"Oh you know what? Never mind what I just asked, it's not important. But there is something I've been dying to ask you since we found you this morning…" Yuffie was fidgeting. She didn't know how to go about asking her next question to the man beside her. Vincent was still looking at her, waiting for her to continue. Deciding she didn't have anything to loose, Yuffie proceeded to ask her question.

"Well, you see, before we found you, we found this letter that explained where you were, and it said that you'd been put to sleep. I was kinda wondering since we found you in a coffin and all, why in Leviathan's name were you put to sleep in there?" Yuffie asked this in a quiet tone, so the others would not overhear.

"…" Vincent did not answer; instead, he turned to stare at the road ahead.

"Not gonna tell me, huh?" Yuffie looked forward as well, clasping her hands behind her head. "Whatever, you don't have to tell me if you don't feel like it." She looked at Vincent from the corner of her eye. He was still looking forward, but now he had this far away look in his eyes, like he was reminiscing about something. Yuffie sensed in might be a good time to change the subject.

"Hey Vincent, have you ever been to Mount Nibel before?"

"…Yes, once." Vincent's eyes were focused on the present once more as he answered.

"I've never been there myself, but I've heard about it a few times before, back when I travelled alone." Yuffie dug her hands in her pockets and started playing with the materia she had there. "They say that mountain's full of Mako, which I guess isn't really that surprising. I mean, why else would Shinra choose to build a reactor there? But that's not what I find interesting about it. Someone told me a while back that materia formed naturally somewhere deep inside the mountain. Natural materia; now _that's_ something I'd like to see."

Yuffie took out a materia from her pocket and raised it to eye level, admiring how the light shone off of it as she rolled it between her thumb and index. "I like materia a lot. So much power in something so small… I guess you could say I'm some kind of materia hunter." She pocketed the materia once more and looked up at her silent companion.

"You're not much of a talker, are ya Vinny?" Yuffie gave Vincent a toothy smile. "Mind if I call ya Vinny?"

Vincent gave her a look from under his dark bangs, narrowing his eyes slightly at her. "No I'm not. And yes, I _do_ mind you calling me anything other than my given name."

"Vincent it is, then." Yuffie found that she couldn't look him in the eyes when he stared at her that way; it made him look even scarier then he really was. And he hadn't even raised his voice at her! She decided then and there that she never wanted to see the tall gunman angry. If he looked this scary when he was only a little annoyed, Yuffie guessed he was probably downright terrifying when angry.

Yuffie fell silent for a moment, wondering why it was she had thought it would be a good idea to try and chat with Vincent. He obviously didn't like talking, although she had to admit he was a much better listener then the rest of Avalanche. He seemed to pay genuine attention to her when she spoke, unlike most of the others who simply ignored her. And he hadn't told her to stop yet, which in itself was really amazing.

The young girl finally came to a decision. As long as he didn't voice some sort of objection, she would keep talking to him until they arrived at Mount Nibel. She didn't care if she had to do most of the talking, as long as he listened to what she had to say.

"Say Vincent, since you've been to Mount Nibel before, can you tell me how much longer we have to walk?"

"…"

"Cause ya know, I'm getting really tired of walking in all this mud."

"…"

"You'd think that with all this heat, it would have dried up by now…"

"…"

"I'm all covered in mud, especially my shoes. Look at them, they're ruined! It's gonna take me forever to clean them. Maybe I should just buy a new pair when we get to the next town…"

"Yuffie, be quiet."

"…What?"

"Silence…"

Yuffie looked at him, dumbfounded. She had known there was a chance he might not like her talking to him, but she hadn't thought that he would downright tell her to shut up. That was more Barret's style. She felt almost hurt for a moment, until she noticed how Vincent tilted his head to the side slightly, the same way Red XIII did when he heard something no one else could. Vincent was listening for something, she realized.

Vincent stopped and looked at her. "Do you hear that?"

"Hear what?" She looked at him with a confused look.

"Listen carefully…"

Yuffie stopped as well and did as he asked, but she still couldn't hear anything besides what little noise her friends made. "Vincent, I really don't know what you're talking about… What is it you think you're hearing?"

"I'm not sure…" Vincent's eyebrows were knotted together in concentration as he listened intently. "It sounds like a bird flapping its wings… but I don't think it's a bird…"

"…Ok Vincent that makes absolutely no sense whatsoever… The only thing I hear flapping around here is your cape…" She looked at him like he had gone crazy, but he paid her no heed.

Suddenly Vincent's eyes went wide, a look of realisation on his face. He drew his gun and darted forward towards the group. Not knowing what else to do, Yuffie released her shuriken from where it was strapped to her back and followed after Vincent.

"Vincent, what the hell is going on?" Yuffie yelled at Vincent's back, trying to get some kind of insight as to why he was acting so weird. Upon hearing her yell, the rest of Avalanche finally stopped and turned around to see what was going on back there.

"Everyone get ready! They're coming!" said Vincent, slowing to a stop as he reached the group, Yuffie stopping by his side a few seconds later.

"What's coming?" asked Cloud, looking a little confused by the gunman's warning but reaching for his sword none-the-less.

Before he could answer, a loud screech echoed through the canyon, followed by another, this one further than the first.

"Up there!" yelled Aeris as she pointed her finger towards the sky. Everyone followed her line of view and gasped as a large winged creature appeared from beyond the cliff and made a dive for the group. It looked like some sort of gargoyle, with purple reptilian skin and large leathery wings.

"What the fuck is that?!" shouted Barret, aiming his gun-arm at the ugly purple creature.

"It's a Valron!!" yelled Tifa, raising her fists in a defensive position in front of her. "We have to take it down quickly; where there's one, there's bound to be a lot more!"

"You don't have to tell me twice!" Barret let loose a stream of bullet, most of which missed the rapidly approaching beast. Those that did hit did nothing to slow it down. "God dammit!"

"Aaayahh!!" Yuffie threw her Shuriken full force, sending it flying towards the Valron. The monster tried to evade but the Shuriken clipped one of its wings none-the-less, sending it spiralling to the ground. It landed in the mud some thirty meters ahead of the group just as Yuffie expertly caught her weapon.

Cloud, Tifa and Aeris advanced towards the prone creature to finish it off just as three other Valrons appeared overhead. Before Yuffie had a chance to attack again she heard a very loud and distinct blast from behind her and watched as one of the Valrons came crashing down, obviously dead. She looked back just in time to see Vincent take aim and shoot another of the winged creatures down.

"Bolt3!" Cait Sith cast a lightning spell just as the remaining Valron made its approach. It screeched as electricity coursed through it, but kept on coming. Red XIII leapt on the pain stricken Valron just as it was about to land, snapping its neck with his powerful jaws and ending its life.

"Heads up!" hollered Barret, shooting a few rounds upwards as yet another group of Valrons appeared.

"How many of those are there?" asked Yuffie in annoyance, throwing and catching her Shuriken over and over.

"Aeris! Watch out!!" Yuffie whipped her head around when she heard Cloud's panicked cry. Cloud and Tifa were fighting their way towards Aeris, who had somehow gotten separated from them, but it was obvious they weren't going to get to her in time. Aeris was desperately trying to fend off one Valron with her staff, so when two more swooped down to attack her there was nothing she could do to stop them. She closed her eyes just as they were about to strike.

"_Aeris_!!" Yuffie's cry was drowned out by the sound of Vincent's rapid gunfire as he repeatedly shot in Aeris's direction. Thanks to his incredible marksmanship, he was able to bring down the creatures intent on harming Aeris as well as those keeping Cloud and Tifa back. As soon as Tifa and Cloud rushed to the bewildered girl's side and he was certain that all three were alright, Vincent reloaded and turned his attention once more to the Valrons remaining in the sky, ignoring how half the group was gawking at him.

By the time it was over ten minutes later, Avalanche had killed a total of 19 Valrons. The group of fighters was exhausted, but otherwise unharmed. Thankfully, all of the creatures had been taken down before any of them had a chance to do any real harm. After taking care of whatever scrapes and bruises they had and once everyone was rested, the group was on its way.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

"Supper's ready, come and get it!"

"Aeris, that broth of yours smells delicious!" declared Tifa as she took the bowl Aeris handed to her.

"It's my mom's recipe; she's the best cook there is," said Aeris as she finished serving out bowls to everyone save Cait Sith and Vincent. She took her own bowl and sat down next to Cloud.

Vincent was sitting at the base of a tree, away from the group relaxing around a campfire. They had finally arrived at the base of the mountain at around sunset, about an hour and a half earlier. Cloud had chosen to set up camp in a small patch of trees near a small mountain stream. That way they had plenty of firewood and water and the trees provided some cover from the chilly wind blowing down from the mountains.

Vincent could easily smell Aeris's cooking from where he was, but found that he wasn't at all enticed by it. He was starting to wonder if there might be something wrong with him. He hadn't eaten in god knows how long. Why wasn't he hungry?

But the fact that he didn't feel hungry wasn't what worried him the most at the moment. He was much more preoccupied with something he had discovered about himself earlier that day, when the Valrons had attacked.

He had found out completely by accident, when he had been forced to kill one of the Valrons at close range. The creature's blood had sprayed all over the gunslinger and some of it had ended up on his face. He hadn't paid too much attention to it as he continued shooting down the remaining Valrons. It wasn't until the attack was over that Vincent realized what he was doing; he was actually licking at the blood as it trickled down his face towards his mouth. Vincent felt sickened with himself, but couldn't deny that he enjoyed the taste of it immensely.

Vincent Valentine, ex-Turk, liked the taste of blood.

Like he didn't have enough issues as it was. Maybe it was a good thing that he wasn't hungry after all. He didn't want to know what he might crave for if he ever got the urge to eat.

Vincent was brought out from this disturbing line of thoughts when he noticed Aeris approach him, a bowl held carefully in her hands.

"Hi Vincent," she said with a smile as she knelt down next to him. "I know you said you weren't hungry, but I really think you should eat something." She handed the bowl to him and continued speaking before he could protest. "Just try it. It's like my mom always says: 'appetite comes with eating.'"

Vincent looked down at the steaming bowl in his hands. Maybe she was right. He cradled the bowl awkwardly with his clawed hand, arranging it so it wouldn't slip from his clumsy grip. His claw was evidently not made to hold onto delicate porcelain. Once he was satisfied he wouldn't drop the bowl, he undid the first two clasps holding his cape's high collar in place and picked the spoon up with his right hand.

The girl still wasn't leaving and so he looked up at her. She was looking back at him expectantly he noticed, waiting for him to take his first bite.

"Thank you," he said with dismiss, lowering his gaze once more as he brought a spoonful of broth to his mouth. Aeris finally got back up and left, apparently satisfied that he would at least give her food a chance.

As he swallowed his first mouthful, Vincent reflected on the fact that it was edible, but it didn't taste as good to him as it probably should. Thinking it might just need some getting use to, he took a few more bites. He almost immediately regretted doing so when he felt his stomach lurch rather unpleasantly.

Oh god he was going to be sick…

Putting the bowl aside, he got up and silently slipped away from the group. Once he was certain the others could no longer see him behind the tree cover, Vincent sped up, intent on putting as much distance between himself and the others before he threw up. He didn't want anyone to see him like this. Finally he could no longer take it. He collapsed forward on his hands and knees and proceeded to empty his stomach on the forest floor.

When he returned to the group some twenty minutes later, they had already finished eating and had cleaned everything up. Vincent looked down to where he had been previously sitting to see that his bowl was no longer there. He was thankful for that, since he didn't have the heart at the moment to be around any type of food. He wanted nothing more then to sit down at the moment but knew he wouldn't get the chance to do so right away since Yuffie was approaching him.

"Hey Vincent!" she greeted happily as she stepped out into the shadows that partially concealed him. "Where'd ya go? You missed out on seeing Barret take a dunk in the stream, courtesy of Cait Sith." Vincent looked over the young girl's shoulder to see the soaked man in question huddle near the fire with a blanket, obviously pissed.

"You should've been there to see it! It was sooo funny!!" She was grinning happily, obviously enjoying Barret's misery. Barret glared at the girl's back but otherwise said nothing. She, of course, failed to sense the animosity and went on explaining what he had missed in detail, much to his annoyance.

Luckily for him, he didn't have to listen to her for much longer since Cloud had finally noticed his arrival and was coming his way.

"Vincent," said Cloud as he approached the two, causing Yuffie to fall silent. "I was wondering if you might be willing to take the first shift of night-watch tonight." Vincent nodded in agreement. "All right then. You'd have to wake me up at three so I can take the second shift."

Cloud then looked at Yuffie by his side. "You should start putting up the tent for the girls before it gets too late, Yuffie." Having said this, he returned to the camp site where the guy's tent was already set up.

"Aww man…" whined the young ninja as she followed after her leader, arms crossed in front of her. "I hate it when it's my turn to put up the tent…"

Three o'clock.

Vincent was sitting at the base of the same tree as before, watching over the slumbering party vigilantly. His first shift as lookout had gone by without incident, the hours ticking away quickly.

The gunman glanced at the wristwatch Cloud had lent him. He had a watch of his own, the one he had been wearing when he had been placed in his coffin, but the batteries had long since died.

Noticing the time, he got up and slowly made his way across the darkened campsite, stepping in between the still smouldering ashes of the campfire and Cait Sith's prone form, the cat-like doll seemingly shut down for the night. He approached the men's tent, the sound of Barret's loud snoring irritating his sensitive hearing as he got closer. Vincent stopped by the tent and listened carefully. He could hear Cloud breathing slowly, obviously sound asleep.

Deciding against waking the blond man up, Vincent walked back to where he had previously been and sat down again. He wasn't tired anyway, and he knew the leader was just as exhausted as the rest of Avalanche.

Vincent looked up at the starlit sky, waiting patiently for the sun to rise and chase away the shadows.

Too bad it couldn't rid him of the darkness threatening to overwhelm his tortured soul…

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

**Author's note: **_Whoa…This is by far the longest chapter yet for this story. I actually had to cut it short too. Next chapter's already started, so you won't have to wait too long for it to come out. I've got a few things to say, but I'll try to make this as brief as possible. _

_First off, special thanks to _I Cyn I _and _minoki _for reviewing chapter 4. Hope you'll do the same for this chapter… Who knows, I might start handing out cookies to everyone who reviews. _XD

_Secondly, before any of you show up at my door with pitchforks and whatnot, I _know_ Vincent isn't a vampire. I'm not trying to make him in to one either. I just decided to give him more vampiric attributes then he normally displays. He isn't going to latch himself onto people's necks or start crying bloody murder at the sight of a crucifix anytime soon, so don't worry. That would be way too OOC for my taste… _o.O

_For those of you who are still sceptical, let me explain my point of view. Vincent already displays a lot of vampiric characteristics because of the demons he shares his body with, such as immortality (both in the sense that he doesn't age _and_ that he can survive nearly any injury), heightened senses, inhuman strength and speed, shapeshifting…If you think of all those things (not to mention his overall physical appearance and the fact that he did come out of a coffin…) Vincent's taste for blood isn't such a stretch from reality. _

_Still don't like it? Tuff luck than, cause I ain't changing it! _XD

_Well, I guess that's all I had to say…Got to go… _

_TTFN!! _;)


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII. Final Fantasy 7, the storyline and its characters belong solely to Square-Enix. **

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

**Chapter 6**

The early morning hours found Vincent in the same spot as the night before, sitting under a large oak tree. The sun would not rise for another hour, but already the sky was brightening to the east and a few birds had begun singing, the feathered creatures welcoming the new day eagerly with their joyful melodies.

Light dew had settled onto everything and Vincent found himself fascinated by the tiny droplets of pure crystalline water clinging to the cold metal of his clawed hand. The tiny beads of water captured what meagre light there was and released a radiant spectrum of colors, setting the dew aflame with life in a manner he never knew could be possible. With his enhanced eyesight, Vincent was amazed to discover he could discern colors he had never even dreamed existed.

So captivated was he by this new discovery that at first he failed to notice the sound of someone stirring. The sharp sound of a zipper snapped him back to his senses, the gunslinger finally tearing his gaze away from his claw to see a dishevelled Cloud stepping out from the men's tent, followed by Red XIII a moment later. Zipping the tent door close once more, Cloud sat down on a small bolder with a yawn, dropping the backpack he had dragged with him beside the remnants of last night's campfire. Red XIII leisurely made his way to the cold stream, apparently in need of a drink.

Cloud yawned a second time, rubbing the residual sleep from his eyes. "'Morning Vincent," said the still sleepy leader as he looked down to check what time it was on his wristwatch, which of course he didn't have since he had loaned it to Vincent.

"It's a quarter to six," said Vincent before Cloud had a chance to ask. He got up and dusted himself off before walking over to Cloud to return the watch.

"You didn't wake me up for my shift like you were supposed to. Did you fall asleep?" asked Cloud as he took back his watch and strapped it to his wrist once more.

"No," answered Vincent, still standing next to the swordsman. "I wasn't tired and I thought you could use a few more hours of rest."

"You mean to say you stayed up all night?" said Cloud, looking up at the man next to him with a perplexed look on his face. Vincent nodded yes. "Aren't you tired at all?"

"Not really," said Vincent truthfully as he crossed his arms in front of him, his gaze drifting away from Cloud to settle on Red who was returning from the stream. The cat-like beast locked eye with the tall gunslinger and nodded his head slightly to him in greeting, which Vincent returned with a nod of his own.

Red sat in front of the two men, still looking up at Vincent with his golden eye. "You look quite rested for someone who hasn't slept in the last twenty-four hours." Apparently he had overheard their conversation. "Does this have anything to do with the fact that you were sleeping when we found you?"

"Oh yeah…" Cloud rubbed the back of his neck, having apparently forgotten all about that. "How long had you been sleeping down there, Vincent?"

Vincent resisted the urge to frown. Yuffie had inquired about his time spent in the coffin the day prior and now these two were asking a similar question. He really didn't want to approach that particular topic, knowing any answer he provided them with was bound to bring about more questions, some of which might be particularly painful for him to answer…

Come to think of it, he didn't even _know_ the answer to Cloud's question… How much time _had_ he spent cooped up inside that coffin? Only one way to find out…

"What is the date today?" asked Vincent all of a sudden.

"Today's Friday, July the twelfth… At least I think it's the twelfth…" Cloud scratched his head, unsure of his answer. "It's hard to keep track of what day it is with all the travelling we've been doing lately."

"…Of what year?" Vincent hated having to ask this, knowing how odd such a question sounded. He had hoped Cloud would specify the year and save him the trouble of having to ask, but apparently he wasn't so lucky.

Cloud cocked an eyebrow at the caped figure next to him, apparently trying to decide whether he should be taken seriously or not. "You're kidding, right?..." Vincent narrowed his eyes at Cloud, the look on his face clearly telling the leader that he was dead serious. "You really don't know what year this is?"

"No…" Vincent answered in a deadpanned voice.

"Oh… Well, it's 1997."

Vincent turned his back to his two companions, his gaze drifting east to the brightening sky. "Thirty years…" he whispered softly to himself. This confirmed his previous suspicions that many years had gone by since he had first been put to sleep in that box for the dead. Whatever hope he had held that he might have been wrong in his estimate had just been squashed, and Vincent was left feeling empty and lost.

"Vincent?…" The gunman could hear the concern and confusion in his leader's voice but he didn't turn around, needing some time to recollect his scattered thoughts. He stood there in silence, perfectly still but for his cape and his unbound hair swaying softly in the cool morning breeze.

After several minutes he finally turned around to face his team mates once more, just as Cloud was getting up. Both Cloud and Red looked at him expectantly, waiting to hear what he had to say. They didn't have to wait long.

"I was asleep for the past thirty years," said Vincent in an even voice, answering Cloud's earlier question. He wasn't surprised by the look of shock that overtook his companions' features.

"Thirty years?!" exclaimed Cloud incredulously. "But how is that possible? You don't look a day over thirty!"

Vincent didn't want to go into details just now about what exactly had transpired all those years ago, and so he tried to make this as brief as possible. "I'm… I _was_ twenty-seven years old at the time. I haven't aged since then because of what Hojo did to me before he put me to sleep in that coffin."

Silence fell on the group for a moment, until Red spoke up. "I too was experimented on by Hojo a while back. His methods can be rather… cruel at times." Vincent was a bit surprised to hear this; he hadn't thought anyone else from Avalanche shared such intimate ties with the Shinra scientist. He suddenly felt less alone knowing that one of his new companions knew, at least to some extent, what he had gone through. "Is this why you want to find him?" asked the red beast softly in his low, guttural voice, a knowing look in his eye. "To exact revenge for what he did to you?"

"It's part of the reason, yes." Vincent heard some shuffling coming from the tents. "The others are waking," he observed, changing the subject and effectively putting an end to the conversation.

Red XIII and Cloud both turned their attention from Vincent to the three girls as they stepped out of their tent. "Hi guys!" greeted Tifa as she stretched her finely toned arms over her head. "You're up early." Both she and Aeris sat down on a fallen tree trunk next to the tents.

Yuffie trotted over to Cait Sith's prone form, poking at the robot with a slim finger. "Rise and shine, fur ball!" When he didn't respond she gave him a push, causing him to go tumbling off the mog and finally "waking" him up. "Hey! Why'd ya do that for?" asked Cait as he jumped back onto the overgrown mog.

"Oh get over it! It's not like you felt anything anyhow, tin-man." Yuffie rolled her eyes at Cait Sith as she said this. "So," she said, dismissing Cait completely, "what's for breakfast?"

"How about some pancakes?" proposed Aeris, getting up and walking over to Cloud's backpack to retrieve the cooking pan and a sachet of instant pancake mix.

"Mmm! That sounds good, Aeris!" said Yuffie, plopping down next to the remnants of the campfire. She pilled some kindling onto the cold ashes and started a new fire using her mastered Fire materia.

"I'll fetch some water for the pancakes," said Tifa as she retrieved a small empty container from the backpack and made her way to the stream.

Having nothing better to do, Vincent decided to scout the area while the other ate. He took off through the trees in the general direction of Mt. Nibel.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

"_BANG_!!"

A large grey wolf was brought down as it leapt towards Vincent, its limp body hitting the ground directly in front of the gunman's feet. Whirling around, he shot and killed two more wolves on a low ledge some fifteen feet away from him.

Vincent had been wondering on the mountain path alone for the past twenty minutes when he had found himself surrounded by a large pack of hungry Nibelheim wolves. Having heard their approach, he had been ready for them when they had finally made their presence known to him, but they were proving more troublesome then he had first expected.

The wolves were an impressive size, much larger then what they normally should be. The creatures had no trouble eluding him in the uneven terrain, hiding behind large boulders and inside crevasses or leaping onto the high ledges of the surrounding cliffs. They were attacking the lone gunslinger from every side. Every time Vincent turned to bring down one wolf, a few would try to sneak up behind him.

"_BANG_!! _BANG_!!"

Another one hit the dirt, twin bullet holes adorning its skull. As he reloaded, a black wolf suddenly jumped at him from atop a nearby boulder, baring its teeth menacingly. Vincent sidestepped quickly, striking out his claw at the approaching danger. Digging his sharp digits into the creature's soft belly, he used the wolf's own momentum to send it plummeting to its death down the precipice behind him. He flicked the excess blood coating his claw and finished reloading in time to bring down three more wolves coming in from his left.

Finally they stopped coming. He hadn't killed the whole pack – some of them had been smart enough to know when to quit – but at least a dozen or so wolves had found death at the hands of the sharpshooter.

Once he was certain the attack was over, Vincent holstered his gun and headed down the path the way he came from. The sun had already risen over the horizon and Vincent knew the others would be ready to leave soon. He had to hurry; his little run-in with the wolves had taken a lot of his time and he knew the others would start worrying about him if he didn't show up soon, especially since he hadn't told any of them where he was going.

Vincent decided it might be as good a time as any to test his speed and agility. He darted down the path at breakneck speed, revelling in the feeling of freedom that came from this simple action. Up ahead, the path was blocked by a very wide fissure which travellers had to circle in order to make their way up the mountain. Feeling daring, Vincent crouched low as he got close to the edge of the hole and propelled himself up and forward. He cleared the gap with ease and continued down the path without ever slowing.

Vincent reached the base of the mountain in the fraction of the time it would have taken him by walking. Slowing down to a more leisurely pace, he finally entered the campsite just as the others finished packing up their tents and supplies.

Aeris gasped as she saw him, her eyes wide with horror. "Sweet Gaia! Vincent, are you alright? You're bleeding!!" She pointed to his bloody claw as she said this, the rest of the group turning to see what had caused such alarm in the young woman. Vincent looked down at his metal appendage with a small frown; he had apparently forgotten to clean the blood from the wolf before returning to the group.

After reassuring the girl that he was indeed alright and rinsing his claw in the stream, Vincent picked up one of the backpacks and hoisted it onto his left shoulder, waiting for the group to leave. It didn't take long; five minutes later, the group was on its way up the mountain.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

"We have to cross _THAT_!?!" Yuffie's shrill cry echoed across the mountain peeks surrounding the group, frightening a few of the smaller creatures inhabiting this barren landscape.

"Dammit girl! Not so loud, will ya?" Barret glared at the young ninja standing right next to him, his ears ringing from her outburst.

The group known as Avalanche had been travelling up Mt. Nibel for nearly four hours now, cautiously making its way up the traitorous mountain pass. They hadn't met too much opposition on the way up, other than a few monsters which were quickly taken care of by the group of fighters.

The only obstacle now standing between the cave leading out of the mountain and Avalanche – the thing Yuffie had been so vocal about a moment ago – was an old, rickety rope bridge. The structure was suspended precariously over a huge precipice, stretching over the thirty meters or so separating the cliff on which the group now stood from the cave on the other side. To make matters worse, the wind at this altitude was rather strong and caused the bridge to rock from side to side, making the trip across it even more perilous.

"Don't worry Yuffie," said Tifa in her most reassuring voice, stepping closer to the teenager as she said this. "I've crossed that bridge plenty of times without incident. It's perfectly safe, I promise."

"Yeah right, Tifa. You really expect me to believe that? Look at it!" Yuffie pointed at the bridge in question, obviously unconvinced by Tifa's words of assurance. "That thing looks like it's about to fall apart any moment now!"

"I must agree with Yuffie," interjected Red XIII before Tifa had a chance to respond. "The bridge does look a little… rundown." He looked at the bridge with an appraising look on his face, clearly unimpressed by the pitiful state it was in. "Is there no other way across?"

"I'm afraid not," answered Tifa. "Unless we turn around and…" "No." Cloud interrupted before she could finish her sentence. The group's attention shifted to the blond leader.

"If we turn around now we'll loose a full day of travel and we can't afford to waste anymore time. The fastest way across the mountain is through the cave system and this is in the only way to get to it. We don't have a choice; we have to cross the bridge." He looked at each of his team mates as he said this, the determined look in his eyes quieting any protest they might have had.

Cloud took a few steps towards the suspended bridge, stopping in front of it. "To be on the safe side, we'll cross the bridge one at the time. Cait Sith, I want you to be the first to go across since you obviously can't die." His piercing blue eyes settled on Cait, the doll responding to Cloud's order with a mock salute before it hurried over to the bridge.

"See you all on the other side!" said the robot to the group with a goofy smile etched on its face. Cait then steered his giant stuffed Mog onto the bridge, and to everyone's relief the structure didn't collapse under the added weight. They watched in silence as their robot friend made his way carefully across the bridge until he finally reached the other side safe and sound. Once on the other side, Cait turned around and waved happily to his companions. He was yelling something to them but the group couldn't hear him, his words being lost to the strong winds blowing through the mountains.

"I'm crossing next," said Cloud as he stepped onto the bridge, holding onto the ropes on each side to maintain his balance on the unsteady structure.

"Be careful Cloud," said Tifa anxiously from behind him. He glanced around and gave his childhood friend a reassuring nod. She was pulling at her leather gloves and unconsciously biting her lower lip, a bad habit she had whenever she was nervous about something. He couldn't blame her; the memory of having fallen off of a similar bridge along with her was still fresh in his mind, even though five years had gone by since the incident. Tearing his gaze away from her, Cloud began crossing the bridge, mindful not to look down as he did so.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, he too made it safely across the rope bridge. He turned around in time to see Tifa as she started crossing the canyon after him. As she neared the halfway point, a sudden gust of wind swung the bridge sideways, surprising Tifa and throwing her off balance for a moment, almost causing her to slip off the bridge. Cloud nearly ran forward to help her but thanks to her quick reflexes she had already regained her footing. Tifa stopped advancing and held the ropes tightly until the wind finally relented enough for her to finish crossing. Once she neared the side, Cloud took her hand, helping her off the rope bridge and onto firm land. He felt relieved now that she was safe, but at the same time he was worried about his other companions.

On the other side, Yuffie was throwing a fit, adamantly refusing to cross after witnessing what had just happened to Tifa.

"_NO WAY_!! I don't care if it is the only way off this mountain; I am so NOT crossing that death trap!!!" The young ninja sat down cross legged on the dusty mountain path with her back to the bridge, obstinately refusing to look at it. Her cheeks were flushed red with frustration, a sharp contrast to how pale she had been a moment ago after her friend's near fatal fall. "I'm staying here and that's final!"

"Quit your complainin' will ya? Least you've got two hands to hold on with if ya fall." Barret impatiently shoved his gun-arm in front of the young girl's face so she had no other choice but to focus her attention to it. "This here prosthetic's comes handy in battle, but it sure won't do me no good if I slip off that damn bridge. And in case you hadn't noticed, Red over there ain't got no hands at all!" He moved his prosthetic away from Yuffie's face and pointed to their four legged companion sitting near Vincent. "Now stop moping an' get going!"

"Is that supposed to make me feel better? Tifa's got two hands I'll have you know, and that still didn't stop her from almost falling!" said Yuffie irritably, pointing out the obvious flaw in Barret's logic.

Aeris, who had been waiting quietly near the bridge, came up beside Yuffie and knelt down next to her, putting a comforting hand on her young friend's shoulder. "I know you're scared Yuffie, but you shouldn't let that fear get the best of you." Yuffie locked eyes with Aeris, stormy gray meeting with emerald green. "That's easy for you to say, you're not the one who's scared right now." Aeris smiled warmly to the girl next to her. "If it makes you feel better, I'll admit that I'm a little scared of falling too. We all are."

Yuffie seemed a little surprised by her friend's admission, but knew Aeris wouldn't lie to her. "You are?" she asked, to which Aeris nodded. "Tell you what," said Aeris, "why don't we cross the bridge together, you and me. That way we can look out for one another." Yuffie pondered about it for a few seconds before nodding to Aeris. Both girls stood up and Aeris walked up to the rope bridge. "Whenever you're ready Yuffie," said the older girl as she stood there, waiting.

Yuffie came up next to her, eyes transfixed on the rope bridge with something akin to determination. Somehow she didn't feel as afraid as she had been a moment ago knowing Aeris would be by her side. "All right, let's get this over with…"

Yuffie took hold of the ropes on either side of the bridge and started her trek across the abyss with Aeris following close behind. As they neared the center of the bridge the wind picked up once more, causing the bridge to rock even more. Yuffie suddenly stopped in her track.

"Don't be afraid Yuffie, I'm right here behind you," said Aeris, trying to coax her friend into moving once more.

"It's not that Aeris… I think I'm gonna be sick…" Yuffie's hand flew to her mouth as she finished saying this. Yuffie Kisaragi, ninja extraordinaire, had one major weakness; she suffered from severe motion sickness. Once she was certain she wasn't going to throw up, the young ninja started moving forward again. The two girls' progress had slowed significantly, but thanks to Aeris's support and encouragement they eventually made it to the other side.

Yuffie nearly ran the last few steps separating her from the edge of the cliff, collapsing to her knees once she was no longer on the unstable rope structure. "I don't care what anyone says, I am so never leaving solid ground EVER AGAIN!!" It was all she could do not to kiss the ground, so relieved was she to find herself upon it once more.

She found herself being helped back to her feet by Cloud and Tifa. "Looks like Vincent's up next," said Cait Sith from beside the three of them. "Boy, he's sure in a hurry." The robot-cat pointed to the bridge as he said this. Yuffie looked over her shoulder to the other side of the precipice to find that the gunman was already a third of the way across, his blood red cape and ebony hair flying wildly behind him in the wind.

"What's he doing…?" Tifa said worriedly, not understanding what would cause Vincent to practically run on the weak, unstable bridge. It looked like he was shouting something at them although it was impossible for any of them to hear him over the roaring wind. Even more intriguing was the fact that once Vincent was halfway across, Red and Barret started making their way across the bridge also, albeit at a much slower rate then Vincent.

Without warning, Vincent stopped his advance and instead took out his gun, his eyes narrowing dangerously as he aimed the deadly weapon straight at them.

"_What the HELL does he think he's doing_?!?" cried out Yuffie, horrified to suddenly find herself staring down the barrel of their newest team mate's gun. Before any of them had time to react, he pulled the trigger.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

"So who's crossin' next?" asked Barret as he watched Aeris and Yuffie travel carefully across the rope bridge. He and Red XIII both stood next to the bridge while Vincent chose instead to lean against a protruding rock formation nearby. "How 'bout you Vincent?"

Vincent briefly made eye contact with the man, answering with a small shrug of the shoulders. He couldn't care less who went next. Barret didn't seem particularly happy with his response – or lack thereof – but said nothing about it, simply turning to face the bridge once more. Vincent's attention quickly returned to the old rope bridge as well, but he wasn't particularly interested with watching the girls crossing, as was the case with Barret and Red. His interest rested on the old suspended structure of wood and rope the girls where currently traveling on.

It wasn't the first time he'd seen that bridge; in fact, he had traveled across it once, back when he was a Turk, to escort a group of scientists and engineers sent to inspect the newly build mako reactor on Mount Nibel. Of course, at the time the bridge was brand new, looking nothing like it did now. It almost looked as if no effort had been put out to maintain it in good condition over the years. This was one of only two bridges leading up to the reactor, and by the looks of it, the second bridge no longer existed.

This had Vincent wonder about the condition of the reactor itself. It wouldn't surprise him if it hadn't faired any better than the bridge. That would explain all the strange looking monsters he had seen creeping around as they trekked up the mountain. Not to mention the remarkable size of the wolves that had attacked him earlier; probably a side effect from an extended exposure to mako radiation.

The girls had nearly finished crossing, he noticed. The young ninja seemed in quite a hurry to reach Terra Firma; he watched as she ran the short distance separating her from the end of the bridge and collapsed beside Tifa and Cloud. She was helped back on her feet just as Aeris stepped off the bridge.

Just then, movement behind the group caught his attention. He focused on the dark cave on the other side, where he'd seen the movement coming from. His eyes widened noticeably with what he saw. From out of the shadowy cave crawled out a wolf, the largest one he'd seen yet. Two smaller one's followed after it, the three creatures slowly making their way towards his unsuspecting companions, amber eyes burning with animosity.

Vincent sprinted forward immediately, pushing pass Barret to gain access to the bridge. The black man let out a string of curses behind him, obviously furious at him for having shoved him aside. Vincent ignored him, too busy with trying to keep his balance while running on the shifty rope bridge. He was forced to slow his pace to a jog fairly quickly, the wind making it too dangerous even for him to run. At this pace he wouldn't reach them in time; the first wolf was far too close. He needed to warn them. _Now_.

"_BEHIND YOU_!!" he yelled out, trying to warn the group on the other side. They didn't turn around, instead staring at him with confused looks. "_WOLVES!! WATCH OUT BEHIND YOU!_!" he tried again, but still they didn't look back. Finally it hit him; they couldn't hear him over the roaring wind from that distance.

Somewhere in the back of his mind, he vaguely registered Red and Barret yelling behind him, the two of them having probably just noticed what was happening on the other side. He could tell they were on the bridge by the way it shifted.

Up ahead, the largest wolf was getting ready to strike, its muscles visibly tensing under the creature's thick fur coat. Vincent was out of options. He was only halfway across the bridge, with no way to warn the group of the imminent danger.

Vincent stopped his advance and took out his trusty gun. He took aim, but couldn't risk shooting right away because Yuffie was standing directly in front of the creature. He needed to wait for just the right moment.

He didn't have to wait very long. The deadly predator leapt forward suddenly, momentarily exposing itself and entering the gunman's line of fire. Vincent narrowed his eyes, adjusted his aim and squeezed the trigger.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

Yuffie's cry of surprise was drowned out by the single shot, the reverberations echoing off the mountain walls a fraction of a second later. She heard a 'flop' close behind her and all five Avalanche members turned around to see what had caused that sound.

"Oh my god…" was all Tifa could say. The others simply stared, evidently shocked by what they saw.

A massive wolf lay dead a mere two meters from the unsuspecting group, blood seeping from a lethal gun wound to its chest. They had been so busy watching the bridge that they hadn't noticed its approach.

Cloud was the first to recover from the initial shock when he spotted two more wolves near the cave. He rushed at them with his Buster sword in hand, striking down both creatures in one swing before they had a chance to react.

The swordsman scanned the dark cave for signs of any more wolves. He strapped his sword back to its original position once he was certain there were no others and walked back to the group, reaching his friends just as Vincent stepped off the bridge, Red XIII and Barret not far behind the gunslinger.

"Holy fuck!" muttered Barret as he eyed the large wolf carcass closest to the group. He closed in on the prone creature, nudging it with his foot to get a better look at the bullet wound. "I gotta hand it to you, ya sure got some nice shootin' skills there, Vince!" he walked over to the caped man as he said this, giving the sharpshooter a friendly slap on the back. "Don't know how'd ya managed to shoot that thing from way over there though…"

"Nice work, Vincent," said Cloud approvingly to the ex-Turk. All the attention was focused on the lone gunslinger now, and Cloud could tell it was making him uncomfortable. Deciding it was time for them to set off once more, Cloud was about to order the group to get ready to leave when he was distracted by Yuffie's weak voice.

"Leviathan… I don't feel so good…" Everyone turned to look at the girl as she said this. Yuffie's face was incredibly pale, almost green in fact. "I'm… urgh… gonna be…" the poor girl never got a chance to finish her sentence, vomiting her breakfast all over her yellow sneakers.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

**A.N.**_ Ok…This chapter took longer than expected to write, and not because I wasn't inspired to write…sigh… Life got in the way in the form of exams and projects, and I was forced to put aside this story in order to study. _

_On a brighter note, March break is finally here and I've already started writing chapter 7, so you guys can expect another update sometime next week!! _:D

_Thank you to the following people for reviewing: _redlei, Psycho Demon-Witch, H.Tool07 _and _Dragonlady2000-15. _Sends out cookies to everyone _;)

_Ok, so that's pretty much all I had to say for now. Hope y'all like this chapter! _

_Till next time!! _


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII. Final Fantasy 7, the storyline and its characters belong solely to Square-Enix. **

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

**Chapter 7**

After having spent the last half hour navigating through the narrow corridors and small chambers of Mt. Nibel's complex and somewhat confusing cave system, the eight members of Avalanche finally found themselves inside the main room, which basically consisted of a huge grotto located directly under the Mako reactor.

The room was surprisingly well lit, pools of exposed Mako filling most of the room with an eerie green glow. About the room, huge pipes could be seen snaking down from the shadowy ceiling and into the Mako. A series of five incomplete pipes started off from a metallic platform that hung high above the ground before jutting off in five different directions.

Cloud was currently inspecting one of those pipes, leaning inside of it to get a better look, his left hand keeping a firm hold of the pipe's edge to prevent from accidentally slipping down the old, rust-ridden metallic tube.

"Can you see anything?" Tifa was the one who asked this question, the martial artist standing a short distance from her leader along with most of the group. Yuffie was alone on the other end of the platform near a pile of discarded metal sheets, looking the pile over with interest.

"As far as I can tell, it's empty like the others." Cloud pushed away from the pipe and walked back to the group, wiping the dust and specks of rust from his gloved hand onto his dark trousers. "I can't tell where it leads though. It might be safer to just go down the ladder…"

"_Make way_!!"

Cloud barely had the time to step aside as an overexcited Yuffie ran forward, hurdling over a stunned Red XIII before diving head first into one of the pipes with a metal sheet held out in front of her.

"Yuffie!!" Tifa and Aeris cried out at the same time, both girls rushing forward in an attempt to catch the reckless girl before she was out of reach, but they were too late. She disappeared down the pipe, her makeshift toboggan creating sparks as metal grinded on metal.

"_WOOHOO_!!" The ninja's enthusiastic cry echoed up the pipe just as the worried group rushed over to the railing, trying to figure out exactly where their young friend would end up. A moment later, Yuffie flew out of one of the pipes to the left of the group, landing roughly onto a small plateau. She nearly skidded off the elevated rock formation, rolling off the metal sheet a split second before it reached the edge. It clattered to the ground below with a resounding clunk.

Yuffie stood up, turning her dusty face up towards the platform where her friends were staring at her with disbelief. "Well? What are you guys still doing way up there?" she asked innocently, completely ignoring the angry scowls sent her way by most of Avalanche. She grinned mischievously. "Leviathan, you guys are slooww…" She rolled her eyes in mock exasperation as she said this.

Up on the platform, Cloud was pinching the bridge of his nose, trying to calm himself down enough not to scream at the teenager. Barret on the other hand held no such inhibition and wasted no time in scolding the girl.

"_Have you lost your_ _fuckin' mind?!?_" shouted the gun-armed man angrily, his good hand fisted tightly at his side. "That pipe coulda led straight to them Mako pits down there for all ya know!!" He pounded his prosthetic against the railing, causing the girl below to flinch. "Ya could've gotten yourself killed doin' somethin' stupid like that!!" He raised his prosthetic, intent on hitting the railing once more, but a gentle hand on his shoulder made him pause.

"I think she got the idea," said Aeris when Barret turned to face her. He looked back to the ninja; her playful demeanor from moments ago had been replaced by what appeared to be shame and embarrassment. Barret still felt peeved, but he settled on simply glaring at the girl, all the while muttering a few choice words under his breath.

"Stay where you are Yuffie," said Cloud with authority, hoping the girl would listen to him for once and stay put. "We'll be down in a minute."

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

Yuffie sat on the edge of the plateau, sulking as she waited for the others to make their way down. That slide down the pipe was the most fun she'd had all day, and Barret had to go and ruin it for her by making her feel bad.

The girl let herself fall back with a sigh, wincing when her elbows collided painfully with the rocky surface. Upon closer inspection, she discovered both her elbows to be bruised a deep purple, probably from her brutal toboggan landing on the plateau. A shallow cut marred her right forearm, blood slowly seeping from the dirt incrusted wound.

"Nasty…" She wrinkled her nose in disgust as she dislodged some of the filth from her cut.

"Ok… So maybe Barret was right after all," she finally admitted to herself, albeit grudgingly. Jumping into the unknown –literally – wasn't exactly the smartest thing to do, no matter how much fun it might be. '_Still doesn't give him the right to be such an ass about it, though…' _

Her musings were cut short when a glint in the distance caught her eye. While most of the cave was illuminated by the Mako glow, the area with the glint was covered in dark shadows. Yuffie sat up straight, straining her eyes to try and make out exactly what it was she was looking at. It was really shiny, that much she could tell. And small… And kinda roundish looking… Almost like…

"Materia!" she whispered loudly to herself, her cuts and bruises all but forgotten. She glanced over her shoulder to check on her companions' whereabouts. They had all made it to the lower level of the platform by this point, but for some reason they had stalled there. By the looks of it, they were having some difficulty lowering the ladder leading to the ground. Good. They were all too busy to pay any attention to her.

Yuffie jumped down from the plateau, landing soundlessly on the ground. Quickly yet silently, the ninja crept over to the shadowy region ahead of her. Once she reached the relative cover of darkness, she stopped and looked back to make sure none of the others had noticed she was missing. They hadn't. She looked around, trying to locate the Materia.

A small amount of dust fell from the dark ceiling onto the girl's shoulder. She brushed it off quickly, thinking nothing of it.

She finally spotted the Materia a short distance to her right, half hidden behind a pile of rocks. '_Gotcha!' _She crept over to it, kneeling down and reaching behind the rocks to grab the jewel-like object.

Just as her fingers made contact with the small orb, more dust and pebbles trickled down from the ceiling onto her head, followed by a barely audible clicking sound. Yuffie froze. Something was moving above her. Slowly, very slowly, Yuffie tilted her head back towards the pitch black ceiling.

Up above her, twin lights seemed to float in the darkness, periodically disappearing only to reappear an instant later. Her heart nearly skipped a beat. Eyes. Fiery yellow eyes blinking down at her. She suddenly regretted having disobeyed Cloud's order to stay put.

For a moment, Yuffie was paralyzed with fear. She couldn't run. She couldn't scream. Hell, she could barely breathe.

"Yuffie?..." The others had finally noticed her absence. Tifa's distant yet concerned voice had the effect of a cold shower on the petrified ninja. Grabbing the Materia, she bolted towards the group as fast as she could, but didn't manage to get very far. With a deafening roar, the creature hanging from the ceiling dropped down. The massive beast swept one of its insect-like limbs at the retreating girl, sending her flying across the room until she crashed into a stone wall with a sickening thud. Yuffie collapsed on the cold hard floor, unmoving.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

Vincent stepped off the ladder leading to the lower platform. He walked over to the group, mindful not to let his metal-tipped shoes scrape on the metal platform. He just couldn't stand that particular sound.

Cloud was crouching beside the edge of the platform, apparently trying to lower the ladder to the ground. The ladder was rather peculiar; instead of sliding up and down like most ladders Vincent had seen, this particular model could be folded up in half, bending in the middle so the top and bottom half were sandwiched together.

"I think the hinges are rusted. It won't budge." Cloud got back up and gave a kick to the ladder's lower half. It hardly moved an inch.

"Humph… That the best you can do? Step aside rookie…" Cloud moved to stand next to Tifa, giving Barret access to the ladder. With a loud grunt, Barret's massive foot came crashing down on the ladder. Flecks of rust were shaken loose as the ladder started to move, the old hinges moaning from disuse. Barret gave his leader a smug smile, but it was short lived. The ladder stopped moving nearly as soon as it had started. The dark-skinned man kicked at it again, but the old ladder refused to move any further.

"It's stuck…" Barret walked back to the center of the platform where the others were. "_Shit_!! How we suppose to get down, now?"

"We could always slide down the pipe like Yuffie!!" suggested Cait Sith happily.

"_HELL NO_!!"

A loud bang, followed by a metallic grinding sound that had Vincent cringing was heard coming from the ladder. The group turned to find a self-satisfied Tifa standing next to the now lowered ladder. "Amateurs…" said the martial artist before disappearing down the ladder. Cloud and Barret stared after her, baffled.

Aeris giggled, giving both men a nearly apologetic smile before rushing off after Tifa. Cloud cleared his throat, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. "Hum… Ok then, let's get going."

Vincent walked over to the edge of the platform, leaning forward against the railing as he waited for his turn down the ladder. Below him, Aeris giggled some more when Tifa teased Cloud and Barret, both men having finally made it down the ladder. Red XIII was carefully lowering himself down the ladder; quite a feat for a four-legged creature. This left only Cait Sith. The doll was looking up the second platform, where the pipes were.

"Too bad the ladder's fixed…" The doll sighed, looking almost sad as he said this. "I was really looking forward to sliding down the pipe… Yuffie always gets all the fun…" The doll turned to face the plateau where Yuffie had landed. "Hey! Where is she?"

Vincent turned around. Sure enough, the teenager wasn't where she was supposed to be. Grabbing hold of the railing, Vincent leapt over it and landed in a low crouch next to Cloud, startling the group with his sudden appearance. Straightening back up, Vincent wordlessly walked past his leader, heading towards the plateau to the left of the platform.

"Hey guys! Yuffie's missing!" Cait shouted down from the platform.

"Huh?" Tifa looked up at the mechanical cat. "Are you sure Cait? I can't see from down here."

"Positive!" assured Cait as he started descending down the ladder. "I can't see her anywhere."

"Where could she be…?" Aeris sounded worried.

"Goddamn kid probably just got bored with standin' still…" grumbled Barret, although he too sounded a little worried.

Vincent was next to the rock formation now and was making his way around it. Looking down, he saw a set of footprints in the dust leading away from the plateau. He finally spotted Yuffie half concealed in a shadowy corner of the cave, crouched down and looking up.

Something was amiss. He couldn't see the girl's face since she had her back to him, but her rigid stance betrayed her fear. Vincent looked up to the ceiling, following the girl's line of view but couldn't see anything. The ceiling was uneven in certain places and because of this, the section directly above Yuffie was obscured from his view.

"Yuffie?..." Tifa shouted the girl's name as she came around the plateau with the rest of Avalanche. They hadn't spotted their young friend hidden in the shadows yet.

Vincent watched as the young ninja jumped upon hearing Tifa's voice. She grabbed something off the floor and took off running towards the group. A blood curdling roar echoed through the cave just then, gaining everyone's attention. Vincent's eyes went wide as he saw a massive monster drop to the ground where Yuffie had been a mere moment ago. The creature swept one of its massive clawed appendages at the fear stricken ninja. Vincent heard his team mates gasp as they helplessly watched Yuffie soar through the air and collide with the wall, before falling limply to the ground.

When the insect-like creature started crawling towards Yuffie, intent on finishing off its prey, Avalanche rushed to action.

Vincent whipped out his gun, shooting multiple rounds at the creature in order to distract it from its prey. Barret started shooting a moment later. The beast didn't stop its advance on Yuffie. It barely seemed to notice the bullets, its hard, green exoskeleton protecting it from the projectiles.

"Fire3!" Cait cast the spell on the creature, but it didn't seem to affect it what-so-ever.

Cloud, Tifa and Red rushed forward to attack the creature up close, but by that time it was already towering over the unconscious ninja, its clawed limbs raised and ready to strike a fatal blow.

Vincent didn't think. He just reacted. Holstering his gun, he ran forward swiftly, speeding ahead of Cloud, Red and Tifa. He reached Yuffie just as the monster struck, positioning himself over the girl's prone form with his back to the beast.

The claw ripped through his backpack, through his clothes and entered his thorax, breaking multiple ribs and piercing his left lung on the way in. Crimson blood sprayed all over the young ninja. Looking down, he could see the bloodied tip of the claw sticking out of his chest. Pain lanced through his body, but Vincent repressed it as best he could. Dimly, he heard Cloud's angered cry as the swordsman finally came close enough to attack.

The creature roared and backed away from Vincent and Yuffie to face its new opponents. The gunman shuddered violently as the claw pulled out from his body. Now that the creature was distracted, Vincent took the opportunity to gather up his unconscious companion in his arms, mindful not to injure her with his razor-sharp claw. He shrugged off the shredded remains of his backpack and got up on shaky legs, using the wall for support. He watched as his companions battled with the monster for a few seconds before he dashed out of harms way, clutching Yuffie close to him.

He nearly collapsed once he reached Aeris's side. He handed the injured girl over to Aeris so that she could tend to her and then managed to drag himself over to the plateau, leaning his right side heavily against the hard surface. His knees finally gave way and he crumbled to the ground, his right hand clutched tightly against the gaping hole in his chest in a vain attempt to slow the bleeding. At this rate, he would pass out and die of blood loss in a matter of minutes.

A sudden pain erupted in his head, causing the gunslinger to cry out in agony. It felt a thousand times worst then the pain caused by the creature's claw. His breathing became labored and his heart sped up as the pressure in his head increased. The painful pressure soon spread to the rest of his body, and Vincent finally realized through the haze of pain what was happening to him. He was loosing control to one of his demons.

He felt, more then he saw, Aeris approach him. Fearing for her safety, he tried to warn her away but only managed to snarl menacingly at her. It seemed to have the desired effect however as she recoiled fearfully away from him. Tremors shook his body as he tried to remain in control, but he knew he was fighting a loosing battle. He was too weakened by the blood loss.

Digging his bronze claw into the ground, Vincent braced himself for the wave of pain he knew was about to come. A red glow surrounded him as an unnatural wind suddenly picked up. The last thing Vincent saw before blacking out was his right hand quickly morphing into something utterly bestial.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

"…_Holy fuckin' shit_!!"

Barret could hardly believe his eyes. One minute Vincent looked about ready to keel over, and the next he goes and transforms into a _freaking monster_! Barret placed himself in between the Behemoth-like Vincent and the two girls with his gun-arm raised at the ready, uncertain if he should consider Vincent a threat or not, but unwilling to take that chance.

At first, Vincent didn't move. He just laid there on his right side with his eyes closed.

"Is… Is he dead…?" asked Cait Sith nervously from somewhere behind Barret. No sooner had he said this, Vincent's eyes snapped open. He got to his feet slowly, at first standing on all fours before rising up on his hind legs. Taking notice of the group near him, his lips curled up in a vicious snarl.

"_SHIT_!!" Barret's eyes grew wide as the now feral Vincent took a step towards him.

"Vincent stop!!" Recognition flashed in his yellow eyes upon hearing Aeris cry out his name, and Vincent stopped his advance. He looked positively confused as his eyes darted from Barret to Aeris and then back to Barret.

A roar coming from the other side of the room caught his attention. Vincent's eyes drifted to the source of the cry, answering the insect-like creature with a roar of his own. He then rushed towards the monster, now completely disinterested with the humans near the plateau.

Barret sighed in relief, before realizing exactly where Vincent was headed. "CLOUD!" he hollered to get his leader's attention. "Watch your back! Somethin's wrong with Vincent!"

Cloud, who'd been busy trying to evade the insect-like creature's attacks, glanced back briefly to see what Barret was talking about. His eyes widened in surprise at seeing a purple-skinned monster running towards them. He quickly dodged a strike from the first monster and grabbed Tifa's arm, pulling her to the side so they didn't end up getting attacked on both flanks. Red had already noticed the other creature approaching and ran to safety alongside his companions.

The new monster completely ignored the three of them, its attention fully centered on the gigantesque green creature in front of it. As the green monster took a swipe at the Avalanche members, the Behemoth-like creature countered, ramming its horns into its opponent, piercing through the exoskeleton. The insect-like monster shrieked in pain and recoiled away from this new threat, but the smaller monster didn't give it time to recover. The sight and smell of the other creature's blood seemed to send it into a frenzy, as it started attacking relentlessly.

Seeing as this new monster seemed to be at least temporarily on their side, Cloud, Tifa and Red XIII stepped forward to aid it in bringing down the green monster. Soon after, the massive creature gave its final dieing roar before collapsing heavily to the ground, dead.

Its prey now defeated, the Behemoth creature turned its attention to the three Avalanche members next to it. It watched them with caution, teeth bared but not attacking.

"…What's it doing?" asked Tifa warily, not trusting the blood covered beast.

"Cloud!" the creature turned its head towards the source of the voice, but otherwise remained still. Cloud turned as well upon hearing Aeris's voice to see the girl in question running towards them along with Cait Sith. Barret was walking further behind, cradling the unconscious Yuffie in his arms. "Don't attack him!!" said the girl as she stopped next to her leader, her eyes locked on the purple beast. "It's Vincent!!"

Once again, recognition filled Vincent's bestial eyes as he heard his name. He took a few steps back from the group, looking almost fearful. He fell forward on all four legs, panting heavily as the same red glow from before enveloped his body. Seconds later, Vincent's human form emerged as the light receded, the gunman breathing raggedly.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

Vincent's head was spinning like crazy. He couldn't remember where he was at first, or what he had been doing. Looking down to his hands, he was shocked to find them covered in thick warm blood. He quickly realized that he was covered from head to toe in blood.

Memories flooded back to him in bits and pieces and he suddenly remembered the monster that had attacked Yuffie. He'd been injured while rescuing her, had he not? Looking down to his chest, he found that the wound was now completely healed. Even his shirt had somehow mended itself.

Vincent was more and more confused. He knew his injuries, no matter how severe, couldn't account for all the blood covering him. He tried to recall what he had done after rescuing Yuffie, but his memories were hazy. It suddenly occurred to him that. Only one thing could account for his memory lapse and the overwhelming amount of blood on him. He had lost control.

In a panic, Vincent attempted to get up, expecting to be surrounded by the bodies of his companions. He fell back onto one knee, still lightheaded from the blood loss and his exerting transformation.

"Vincent…?" Relief washed over him when he heard Cloud's voice. He looked up to see his team mates safe and sound. The relief didn't last for long however. He could see the fear and weariness on his companions face.

They knew. They had seen him loose control and transform, and now they knew he couldn't be trusted. Vincent was overcome with guilt. How could he have been so selfish? How could he have thought even for one second that he had the right to endanger them by keeping his demons secret?

"Vincent… Are you…" "Stay where you are!" Vincent interrupted Aeris, his voice sounding hoarse. She stopped advancing, looking at him with pity in her eyes.

He couldn't take much more of this. Rising up to his full height, Vincent gave his companions one last apologetic look before taking a step back towards the shadows. Before any of them had the time to say anything, Vincent was gone.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

**Author's note:**_ Dun dun dun… __Oh no! Vinnie's gone!! What's going to happen to him?!? _o.O

_Ok… First off, let me clear up a few things. The monster that attacked Yuffie is called the 'Materia Keeper', in case some of you didn't recognize it. And as for Vincent's transformation, the demon was Galian Beast as he is depicted in the original FF7 game, not the one in Dirge of Cerberus. _

_Secondly, I just want to apologize for not posting this chapter sooner. Blame it on my being lazy… Not sure when I'll be posting the next chapter… Sometime soon, hopefully. _

_Thanks to the following for reviewing last chapter: _sona, dragonlady200015, Pieling_, and especially to _H.Tool07_. That review of yours really made my day. Thanx a bunch!! _;)

_Hum… I guess that's all… _

_Till next time!!_


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII. Final Fantasy 7, the storyline and its characters belong solely to Square-Enix. **

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

**Chapter 8**

"Tifa! Bring water, quick!! I think she's finally coming to..."

"Are you sure Aeris?" Tifa came up behind Aeris, handing her a water gourd. Aeris had been tending to the unconscious Yuffie for a while now, doing her best to heal her injuries by using a Cure Materia in combination with her own natural healing abilities. Looking down to the injured girl, Tifa was pleasantly surprised to see the young girl's eyes slowly flutter open, a barely audible moan escaping through parched lips.

"Yuffie! Oh thank god!" uttered a very relieved Tifa, kneeling down next to the rousing ninja. She helped her friend into a sitting position, placing herself behind Yuffie so she could lean against her. Aeris brought the water gourd up to the young girl's lips. "Here Yuffie, drink this."

Yuffie downed the water offered to her greedily, thin streams of water escaping the corners of her mouth, trickling down her chin and onto her lap. Finally she pulled back, her thirst quenched.

"How are you feeling?" inquired Aeris as she set the half empty gourd on the ground beside her.

"I feel kinda woozy… And my head hurts a lot…" The young girl brought a hand up to massage her temple, discomfort showing on her face. "That creepy monster sure hit me hard... I'm guessing you guys creamed that thing, huh?" asked the young ninja, a weak smile creeping onto her lips. Tifa laughed warm-heartedly. "We sure did, Yuff."

Dropping her hand back down to her lap, Yuffie looked around, taking in her surroundings. "Where are we?" she asked, somewhat confused.

"We're still on Mt. Nibel, just outside the cave," answered Tifa, leaning forward a bit to get a better view of her young friend as she talked. A few strands of her long, flowing hair escaped from their bounds and fell forward, cascading over Yuffie's shoulders.

Yuffie looked thoughtful for a moment. "Hey Tifa…" She shifted, turning so she could face the older girl. "Is… Cloud's not mad at me, is he?"

"Why would Cloud be mad at you?" asked Tifa, wondering what would prompt such a question from her friend.

"Well, you know… For not listening to him and getting myself into trouble… again…" Yuffie's eyes shifted down upon saying this, guild and remorse staining her cheeks red.

"Oh honey! No one's mad at you!" Tifa's arms snaked around Yuffie, pulling the girl into a motherly embrace. "We're just glad you're ok…"

Her worries now dispelled, Yuffie pulled back from the hug and gave Tifa a warm smile. "Thanks Tiff." Tifa smiled back. The young ninja rose to her feet and stretched, working the kinks out of her sore muscles. Tifa and Aeris stood up as well.

"Hey! Where is everyone?" Yuffie had finally noticed that aside from Aeris and Tifa, the other members of Avalanche were nowhere to be seen.

"Barret and Cait Sith are off looking for some firewood and more water so we can make cook some noodles," answered Aeris. "As for the others… They're still in the cave…"

"How come?" asked Yuffie, curious. Aeris hesitated; Tifa, who was standing behind Yuffie, vigorously shook her head 'no'. She didn't want to worry Yuffie needlessly so soon after her recovery.

"They're… hum… Cloud and the others went to check something out at the reactor." The flower girl smiled sweetly, attempting to conceal the deception behind a façade of cheerfulness. Yuffie saw right through the lie. "All right you two, what's going on?" asked the young girl suspiciously.

Tifa sighed warily and walked over to stand beside Aeris. "Cloud and Red are in the cave right now looking for Vincent…"

"Vincent's missing? What happened…?" Yuffie looked puzzled at first, but her confusion quickly morphed to panicked fear when she realized something. "Oh Leviathan… This has something to do with the monster that attacked me, doesn't it? Is this my fault…?"

"Calm down Yuffie," said Tifa. "I'm sure Vincent's fine; we just don't know where he is…" This was going to get tricky. "I'll explain everything Yuffie, but you might want to sit down first…"

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

"This might complicate things…"

Red's low voice echoed off the walls of the small stone chamber he and Cloud were currently occupying. The small cave was similar to all the other caves they had come across while searching for their missing comrade. It was identical in every way but one; this one had a small pond nestled in the very center of the room.

Although the pond's black surface was perfectly still, fresh puddles all around indicated that it had been disturbed recently. Puddles tainted a bright crimson…

"Can you still track him?" asked Cloud, already half expecting what the answer would be.

"I doubt it…" answered Red solemnly, his fire tipped tail swaying slowly behind him. Red sniffed around, trying to get an inkling of which direction Vincent might have taken. No such luck; the trail stopped at the pond.

Up until now, Red had been tracking Vincent by the scent of the blood in which he was covered. Now that he had apparently washed himself off, their chances of finding him had slimmed significantly.

Cloud checked his watch and frowned. They'd been searching for Vincent for well over an hour now, and by the looks of things they weren't going to find him anytime soon. For all they knew, the gunslinger could already be miles away.

"We should get back to the group…" said the blond man resignedly. He and Red stepped out of the room, retracing their steps through the dark underground passages.

Cloud hated this. Vincent was considered part of the team now, despite his rather disturbing transformation earlier. As leader of the group, Cloud felt personally responsible for every one of his team mates, and so being forced to leave one of them behind made him feel like a complete failure.

As they neared the main grotto, Cloud's PHS rang. He stopped and unhooked the device from his belt, bringing it up to his ear. He answered the PHS without as much as a hello.

"_Hey Cloud, it's Tifa,_" said the girl as soon as he answered. "_I'm just calling to let you know that Yuffie's doing alright now… We told her about Vincent…_" There was a small pause in which Cloud could overhear Yuffie in the background, although he couldn't make out what she was saying. Tifa resumed talking after a few seconds._ "Yuffie wants to know if you've found him yet..._"

"I'm afraid not, Tiff…" He heard a disappointed "_Oh_…" on the other end of the line. A small sigh escaped his lips before he continued. "I don't think we'll be able to find him, so we're heading back out. We should be there in about fifteen minutes or so…" He heard Tifa relay the message to the others. Yuffie's indignant cry was heard in the background. A second later, the adolescent was on the phone.

"_I can't believe you two are just gonna give up on him!! After he saved my life no less!!_" said the young girl accusingly, her voice laced with resentment.

"What else do you want us to do Yuffie?" snapped Cloud, irritated beyond measure. "Vincent obviously doesn't want to be found, and we have no idea where to look for him…"

"_Have you even though of calling him on his PHS?_" Cloud didn't answer. The thought of simply calling their missing comrade had never once crossed his mind. "_You didn't, did you? I knew it! I'm calling him right now…" _The girl hung up before Cloud had a chance to say anything.

"_Rrrriiiiiinng… Rrriiiiinng…"_

The shrill ring tone broke through the silence, but it wasn't coming from Cloud's PHS this time, much to his astonishment. The ringing was coming from somewhere up ahead.

Cloud and Red looked at each other briefly before rushing forward to find the source of the ringing.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

Vincent ran his human hand through is damp hair, attempting to untangle his unruly mass of dark locks as much as possible before binding it again. His wet clothes were clinging to his skin uncomfortably, but the gunman didn't mind. At least he wasn't covered in gore any more…

Satisfied with his hair, he wound his bandana around his head, a few locks escaping through the long strip of crimson at odd angles. Vincent leaned back, settling himself comfortably onto his back with his human hand under his head, staring at the ceiling. There wasn't much else to look at, considering he was lying on top of a horizontal pipe a mere four feet from the ceiling.

Vincent closed his eyes, meditating on his current situation. He didn't know what to do. His life would have been much simpler if Cloud and the others hadn't woken him in the Shinra mansion. Briefly, the thought of returning to Nibelheim to resume his eternal slumber crossed his mind but Vincent knew that wasn't an option any longer. Not until he had taken care of Hojo…

The problem was he didn't have a clue as to where he could find the scientist. He wasn't even sure he would be able to recognize him after thirty long years. His best chance of ever finding him had been with Avalanche, but he couldn't in good conscience continue to travel with them. Vincent considered himself extremely lucky he hadn't harmed any of them when he had transformed earlier, and so he wasn't about to tempt the fates by remaining in their company. He was on his own from now on.

The sound of approaching footsteps tore him out of his reverie. Well, perhaps he wasn't on his own quite yet. The others had been looking for him for a while now he knew, although he hadn't a clue as to why. They couldn't possibly want him in their company after what had happened… Grimly, Vincent contemplated the possibility that they might consider him a threat now, just another enemy they needed to track down and eliminate.

Opening his eyes, he turned his head to glance down at the entrance to the cave from which the footsteps were coming. A phone rang, causing the footsteps to stop as the owner of the phone answered. Vincent propped himself up on his elbows, straining his hearing to spy on the distant conversation. He immediately recognized Cloud voice as he responded to whoever was on the other end of the phone. From what he could make out, Vincent surmised that they had finally given up looking for him and were now leaving. Good.

Vincent lay back down, closing his eyes once more. He knew Cloud and whoever was with him would have to go through the grotto in which he currently was in order for them to leave, but he didn't worry about them discovering him. Vincent was perfectly concealed in the shadows, the glow from the Mako pits below too weak to ever reach the ceiling.

A sudden, strident sound much too close to him sent the weary gunman on full alarm. His eyes flew wide open as he reflectively grabbed his gun, searching for the source of the offending noise, only to realize within half a second that it was only his PHS ringing. Cloud had insisted he take it upon joining the group, explaining it was to keep in contact whenever the group split up. Vincent had completely forgotten about the small device strapped innocently to his belt, until now.

Annoyed, he put his gun away and retrieved the PHS, trying to figure out how to shut the thing off. Realizing Cloud was running towards his location, Vincent crushed the PHS with his claw, effectively silencing the contraption once and for all.

Cloud and Red barged into the room just then, stepping onto the metallic platform below him. They stopped, surveying the room carefully for a moment.

"Vincent…?" Cloud called out his name tentatively but Vincent didn't answer. He watched as the spiky haired man stepped forward slowly, until finally he reached the middle of the platform. "Vincent, we just want to talk…"

"…And what exactly is there to talk about?" asked Vincent after a few seconds, his monotone voice barely loud enough for Cloud and Red to hear him.

He watched almost in amusement as both members of Avalanche looked around in confusion, the two of them clearly unable to make out where is voice had come from.

"How about telling us what happened to you earlier?" Cloud sounded a bit frustrated as he asked this. It took Vincent nearly a full minute to respond.

"I lost control…" answered Vincent, the words bitter in his mouth. "I lost control and transformed because I was too weak to suppress my demons…" His tone rose as he said this, but the gunslinger was too angry and disgusted with himself to care.

Cloud's next question took Vincent by surprise. "Are you still coming with us?"

"…Why would you want me to come with you? I'm a danger to you and your friends. Nothing but a monster…"

The fire-cat looked up, having finally figured out where Vincent was hiding. "You're not a monster, Vincent," answered Red. "If you were a monster, you wouldn't have risked your life to save Yuffie… We still consider you a part of the team, if you're willing to stay with us."

"So, are you coming or not?" repeated Cloud, somewhat impatiently.

Vincent could hardly believe it. Despite having seen him transform into a feral demon, they still wanted him to be part of the group. Curiosity took the better of him; he dropped down from the shadowy ceiling in a flutter of crimson, landing in a low crouch in front of the two Avalanche members. With calculated slowness, Vincent stood up to his full height, his blood red eyes scrutinizing the two in front of him for any signs of deception.

Vincent circled slowly around Red and Cloud, his face guarded. He wanted to believe them, but couldn't bring himself to do so just yet. After all, he had just met them less then two days ago; this could all just be some sort of trap. He needed to be sure of their sincerity.

Vincent had performed his fair share of interrogations during his time as a Turk. He had learned different techniques on how to get the truth out of a person, some less pleasant then others, but his favorite had always been intimidation.

After an oppressive moment of silence, Vincent finally spoke. "You still wish for me to be part of your team, knowing what I am?" asked the gunslinger in his low, intimidating voice, keeping his face carefully blank as he continued to circle slowly around the pair.

"I don't see why not… In the two days you've been with us, you've repeatedly proven your worth to us," said Cloud, showing no outward signs of nervousness. The fire cat seemed a bit more edgy then his human companion, the beast instinctively uneasy with the dark gunslinger's almost predatory behavior as he stalked around them. "You're a valued member of this team, Vincent. We trust you..."

"_Trust me…_? How can you trust me when I can't even trust myself…?" Vincent dropped his neutral front, his face taking on a darker, more threatening quality. "What will you do if I ever lose control again and suddenly decide to turn on you?" He took a very deliberate step forward, trying to coax some sort of reaction from the swordsman in front of him.

Cloud stood his ground, his eyes never wavering away from Vincent's intense gaze. "You didn't attack us when you transformed earlier, and I highly doubt you will in the future. However…" Cloud paused briefly, as if contemplating on what to say next. "…If you do become a threat, we're more then capable of restraining you until you regain your senses, and…" The blond leader took a daring step towards Vincent before continuing, his hand resting lightly on the hilt of his sword. "…if it comes down to it, _mark my words_… I won't hesitate to take you down…"

Vincent chuckled darkly, impressed with Cloud's bold answer. There was no doubt about it; the young leader of Avalanche was telling the truth. "Fine, I'll come with you…" said the gunslinger slowly, his eyes still trailed on the shorter man. "…So long as you don't forget that promise…"

"I won't," answered Cloud, dropping his hand away from his sword and extending it out to Vincent. The caped man hesitated briefly, before finally extending his own for a quick, firm handshake.

Seemingly satisfied that they had reached some level of understanding, the leader of Avalanche stepped past Vincent and headed towards the ladder, followed by Red a moment after. "We should hurry," said Cloud as he began his descent to the lower platform. "The others are waiting for us outside."

Vincent trailed behind them much as he had before, hoping against hope that he wouldn't come to regret his decision to remain with the group…

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

As luck would have it, Vincent found himself regretting his decision much sooner then expected, but not for the reason he might have thought…

"… and then Tifa told me how you save me and got hurt really really bad and I'm _soooo_ sorry 'cause it's all my fault and…"

The normally stoic gunman was growing increasingly uncomfortable. Yuffie had nearly bowled him over upon his arrival and was now clinging to him as if she was afraid he would suddenly vanish.

"… and Aeris said you went all freaky like and transformed or something…"

His mind was racing, trying to find a solution to his current dilemma but coming up blank. He simply didn't know how to react to the teenager's emotional breakdown. The others weren't helping things much either, Barret especially. The imposing black man kept grinning at him in between mouthfuls of noodles, clearly amused by all this. Vincent had tried sending the other man a withering glare, but somehow it just didn't seem to have the desired effect with Yuffie sobbing all over him…

"…so then I tried calling you but you wouldn't answer and I got really worried and I thought…"

"Yuffie…" he finally interjected, pushing gently on the girl's shoulders with both hands to try and pry her off him. She looked up, her eyes overly bright with unshed tears. "I'm fine…" he told her once she was at arms length. "…really." She opened her mouth as if to add something but he beat her to it. "It wasn't your fault I got injured. Don't apologize for something you didn't do…"

"But it really is my fault!!" She sniffed, wiping furiously at her eyes with the back of her hand. "If I had just listened to Cloud instead of going after that stupid materia, none of this woulda happened…" She suddenly fell silent, her eyes wide as she realized too late what she had just blurted out.

"What materia?" The ninja cringed upon hearing Cloud's question. She turned facing the group's leader, a look of complete ignorance plastered on her youthful face.

"Materia…? What materia? I don't have any…"

"Yuffie… Don't lie…" warned Cloud as he stood up, clearly not amused with the girl's pretense of innocence.

"Oh… Fine!" said the young ninja angrily, rummaging through her pockets until she found the offending object. "I don't want that stupid thing anyway..." She threw the materia towards Cloud, the spiky haired leader catching the orb deftly in midair.

Cloud checked the materia over for a few seconds, before setting it away. He then approached the young ninja. "Empty your pockets," he ordered sternly, leaving no room for argument.

Yuffie complied grudgingly, her face red as she emptied out all her pockets until every single materia she owned were laid out on the ground for everyone to see.

"Woah! That sure is a lot of materia!" Cait Sith exclaimed as he laid eyes on the pile of materia between Cloud and Yuffie.

"Yuffie…" gasped Tifa as she came up beside Cloud, her eyes unbelieving as she gazed upon the two dozen or so materia on the ground. "Where did you get all those materia?" The rest of the group stood up a moment later, abandoning their half eaten meals to get a closer look.

"Hell! Ain't it obvious? That goddamn thief's been stealin' again!!" said Barret accusingly, glaring at the young girl in front of them with suspicion. He then started checking the slots on his bangle and gun-arm, making sure none of it was missing. "You'd better not have taken any of mine…"

"WHAT!?! I didn't steal none of your stupid materia, Barret!!..." Yuffie sounded angry and hurt with Barret's insinuation. She crossed her arms in front of her, glaring daggers at the man in question. "I can't believe you would think even for one second that I'd steal from you guys!!"

"Can you blame him, Yuffie? You stole from us the first time we met you and we all know how obsessed you are about materia," said Cloud, regarding his young friend with a mix of distrust and disappointment showing in his eyes. "Did you, or did you not, steal those materia?"

"I didn't…" denied the young girl heatedly, her eyes drifting down to the materia at her feet so she didn't have to meet her friends' accusing stares. "They were mine before I met you guys… I just never told you about them…" She sounded very convincing, but Vincent knew for a fact that she was lying through her teeth.

Her answer seemed to appease everyone except for Cloud and Barret. The leader of Avalanche seemed to know she wasn't being truthful but he simply let it slide, having no concrete proof to back his suspicions.

"Pick those up and then finish eating," said Cloud, giving the girl one last meaningful look before turning back to his place by the small fire. Most of the group followed Cloud's lead and went back to eating, but Aeris stayed behind to help her distraught friend gather up her materia.

Once all the materia had been put away, Aeris took Yuffie by the hand, trying to lead her back to the campfire, but the young ninja wouldn't budge from where she stood. "Come on, Yuffie. Barret's gonna eat all the noodles if we don't hurry back," said Aeris jokingly, trying to gently pull her friend along.

"You go ahead Aeris. I'm not that hungry anymore…" Yuffie tugged her hand free, giving her older friend a strained smile. Aeris didn't force the issue; she simply smiled sympathetically before going back to the group.

Yuffie just stood there for a while as if unsure what to do, until finally she walked over to the stone wall behind Vincent, circling around the gunman quickly without once looking up at him. She sat down with her back to the wall, her legs brought up in front of her and her arms circled around them tightly, her guilt ridden face hidden away behind her knees.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

Two days after leaving the Nibelheim Mountains behind, the group finally came across a small village called Rocket Town at the end of the second day. Vincent had never heard of this place before, not that this surprised him much. Judging by the small size of the settlement built at the base of a huge rocket, Vincent estimated that this town had only been around for a few years, a decade at most.

The group of fighters had retreated to the Inn as soon as they had arrived, exhausted with the day's travel. Even Vincent was starting to feel the first signs of fatigue, his eyelids feeling heavier then normal as he spied upon the sleeping town from his viewpoint on the Inn's roof. The gunslinger knew he could probably use a good night's sleep just as much as his companions, probably more so considering he hadn't slept once since he'd awakened from that coffin, but his heightened senses wouldn't allow him that luxury tonight.

It appeared that the Inn's first-floor served as a tavern of sorts at night, the drunken patrons causing enough raucous to drive Vincent out of his room and onto the Inn's rooftop in search of some peace and quiet.

He'd been laying there under the star-studded sky for a few hours now, gazing at the imposing rocket looming over the city with vague interest and wondering why anyone would want to live in its shadow, when the sound of a window sliding open caught his attention. He crept over to the edge of the roof and looked down just in time to see a cloaked Yuffie jumping from her window sill onto the road two storeys down. He then watched as the ninja crept along the cobblestone road until she reached the materia shop a few blocks down, kneeling in front of the doorknob with lock picks in hand.

Deciding he should probably intervene before she robbed some poor shop-owner blind of all his materia, Vincent jumped down from the rooftop and started walking towards the girl, letting his heavy boots make enough noise against the stones to let her know someone was coming, but keeping to the shadows so she wouldn't know it was him.

Yuffie bolted as soon as she heard footsteps, fearing discovery. She scurried back to the Inn through a dark alley, forgoing the main street so she wouldn't come across the owner of the footsteps. Once there, she climbed up the rain spout until she reached her window and reentered her room, closing the window behind her once more.

The gunslinger quickly made his way back to the Inn and jumped effortlessly onto the roof, crouching directly over Yuffie's room and listening intently to the sounds coming from it in case she intended to try and sneak out again. He waited until he was certain she was asleep before allowing himself to relax, lying down on the roof once more.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

"A man wearing a black cloak, with long white hair and carrying a sword you say? Nope, doesn't ring a bell…" said the stubby innkeeper sitting behind the main desk to the spiky haired man in front of him. He took the room keys from where Cloud had dropped them on the counter and tossed them in the key cabinet behind him. "Did ya try asking the Captain about this?" asked the innkeeper as he turned to face the young man once more. "He's the guy responsible for this here town; if anyone knows anything about anything 'round here, it's him."

"Why is he called 'Captain'?" asked Aeris politely, walking over to the counter and leaning forward against it.

"I'm sure ya'll have noticed that big ol' rocket out there?" said the stubby man as he pointed out the window towards the rocket in question. "It was part of the Shinra Space Program that got cancelled a few years back. Everyone you see living in Rocket Town used to be engineers and scientist working on that project. The Captain was the pilot they chose to be the first man in space, but things didn't turn out quite the way they were supposed to… We still call him Captain 'round here, out of respect for the guy."

"Could you tell us where we could find him?" asked Cloud.

"Just head for the rocket, his house is right next to it. There's a plane in his backyard, so ya can't miss it."

Cloud thanked the man for his time before heading out into the street with the rest of the group to try and find the Captain. It didn't take them very long to find his house. It looked very similar to all the other houses in this town, aside for the pink airplane taking up space in the backyard.

"Oh wow! That's so cool!! I've never seen an airplane before!!" Yuffie was practically bouncing with glee at the sight of the plane. She grabbed Tifa and Aeris, dragging both girls around the house with her. "Come on, hurry up!! I wanna get a closer look at it!!"

The remainder of Avalanche unhurriedly followed after the three girls in the backyard. The young ninja had already climbed into the cockpit, pretending to fly the aircraft as Tifa and Aeris giggled happily on the ground beside the plane.

Cloud smiled despite himself at seeing Yuffie so energetic. The girl had been so uncharacteristically quiet and reclusive ever since their confrontation about her materia a few days ago that he had started to wonder if he hadn't perhaps been too hard on her. He was happy to see she was back to her old self again.

The leader took a closer look at the plane, noticing a Shinra logo on it. "Tiny Bronco," he read the name of the plane out loud.

Aeris turned to him excitedly, a huge smile on her face. "Let's take it, Cloud!! Ok?"

"Hey, great idea Aeris!!" said Yuffie as she jumped down from the plane. "It belongs to Shinra, so there's no harm in taking in, right?"

Before he could answer, Cloud heard door open behind him followed by a woman's voice. "May I help you…?"

Cloud turned, coming face to face with a small brunette wearing a lab coat and glasses too big for her face.

"No we're fine," he said to the woman, feeling a bit embarrassed that she had caught them trespassing on the Captain's property. "We're just admiring the plane… Is the Captain around?"

"Oh… Did you want to ask him about the plane? He's probably at the rocket right now…" She examined the small group of people standing behind Cloud, pushing her glasses back onto her nose. "My name's Shera," she introduced, smiling shyly at the group. "May I ask what your names are…?" A quick introduction of the group followed.

"So you're not from Shinra after all…" Shera sounded almost disappointed by this. "I wonder when they'll get here…"

"…Shinra's coming here?!?!" said Cloud a bit too abruptly, causing Shera to jump in surprise.

"Hum… Well yes, President Rufus is supposed to come here sometime today to have a word with the Captain," answered Shera nervously, somewhat confused by the sudden animosity she felt coming from the group when she mentioned the President. Apparently deciding she had seen enough of this odd group, the woman quickly excused herself and returned inside the house.

Cloud turned back towards the group, a determined look on his face. "I'm going to the rocket to have a talk with the Captain. Aeris, Tifa, I want you two to come with me. The rest of you stay here in case the President shows up…"

He quickly rushed off in the direction of the rocket with both girls in tow, leaving the rest of the group behind.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

"What's taking them so long?" Yuffie huffed, bored to tears with waiting.

Vincent was leaning against the house with his arms crossed, discreetly scrutinizing his companions as they waited for Cloud and the girls to return. He could tell Yuffie wasn't the only one tired of waiting, although the girl was the only one being vocal about it.

Barret was pacing continuously around the small front yard, checking his watch every two minutes.

Red was lying in the shade not too far from Vincent, his tail twitching more then usual.

Cait Sith was, thankfully, having one of his 'silent episodes' as Yuffie had dubbed them, the robot sitting completely still and silent on that Mog of his.

As for the young ninja, she was walking back and forth across the small white fence surrounding the yard, her arms stretched out on either side of her for balance.

After waiting for nearly twenty minutes, Vincent finally heard footsteps approaching the house. Cloud, Tifa and Aeris appeared around the bend a moment later accompanied by a man Vincent assumed to be the Captain. The man, who looked to be in his early thirties, had short blond hair contrasted by a tanned complexion. He was carrying a spear over his shoulder.

"Finally!!" exclaimed Yuffie when she noticed the approaching group. She jumped down from the fence just as they entered the front yard. "Took you guys long enough!!"

"These the rest of your friends, Spike?" asked the Captain in between puffs of his cigarette, examining the group of people standing around his property with interest. "No offence," he said as he leaned closer to the leader of Avalanche, "but you're friend's look like a bunch'a weirdo's if you ask me…"

Yuffie and Barret looked about ready to strangle him when he suddenly started laughing amicably, his cigarette nearly falling from the corner of his mouth. "Seriously, I'm just fooling with you guys… Name's Cid, by the way!" said the Captain, smiling in good humor. "Well, what're you all standing outside for? Get your sorry asses inside so I can offer you some goddamn tea!"

Cid barged into his house, leaving the door wide open to allow the group entrance. "Damnit Shera!!" yelled the Captain as the woman in question came out of the kitchen. "Are you fuckin' blind!?! We've got guests!! Make some goddamn tea!!"

"Right away…" said the poor woman as she hurried back to the kitchen.

"I'm gonna check on the Tiny Bronco! There'd better be some damn tea when I get back!!" With that said, the foulmouthed pilot exited through the back door, slamming it on the way out.

Vincent was seething inside, although he looked as calm as ever on the outside. How dare that man treat his wife so poorly and with such blatant disrespect?

"That man has horrible manners!!" said Aeris as she stared at the back door, looking for all the world shocked by Cid's behavior.

"Oh, don't worry about it," said Shera as she stepped out of the kitchen once more, her head downcast. "He's always like that…"

"You mean he always treats you like this?!" asked Tifa in disbelief. "That's horrible!!"

"Oh no, you don't understand… I don't mind, really," said the woman hurriedly, looking up as she said this and smiling weakly. "…It's my fault if the Space Program got cancelled. He gave up his life long dream just to save my life. I owe him everything…"

The backdoor opened suddenly, causing the nervous woman to jump in surprise. "Damnit Shera! I don't smell any goddamn tea!!"

"Sorry Captain," she said apologetically, hurrying back to the kitchen.

Cid stormed into the dining room, eyeing the people standing in it. "Sit the fuck down already!" he said impatiently, before taking a seat at the end of the table with his legs propped up. When no one moved to sit with him, his patience thinned even more. "What?! My hospitality ain't good enough for ya?"

Vincent ignored the string of colorful language that followed, suddenly distracted. He could hear a faint rumbling sound out in the distance, as well as feel an increasingly growing vibration under his feet. He walked over to the nearest window and saw two Shinra issued trucks speeding through Rocket Town and heading towards their location.

"Cloud…" said Vincent without turning from the window, his voice just loud enough to gain the man's attention.

Cloud walked over to the window just in time to see the trucks stop in front of the house. A fat little man jumped out of the first truck and scurried over to the door.

"The fuck's going on?!?" spat Cid angrily, finally noticing no one was paying attention to his rambling. The fat man barged into the house just then, nearly causing the Captain to tip over backwards on his chair. "What the fuck?!... Oh hey! If it isn't fat man Palmer!!" Cid stood up, grinning happily. "Kept me waiting long enough…"

"Hey there Cid!" said the portly man as he wobbled his way to a nearby chair. "Long time no see! The President's waiting for you outside."

"About fuckin' time…" said Cid as he headed out the door to meet with Rufus.

Cloud and Avalanche followed after him. Vincent stayed behind to keep an eye on Shera, unwilling to leave her alone with that fat Shinra employee still lounging in the dining room. He watched from the window as the young Shinra President demanded to have the Tiny Bronco. Apparently, Sephiroth had crossed the ocean at some point and they now needed to plane in order to pursue him. Cid was predictably pissed about this.

At some point during the argument outside, Palmer stood up and headed for the back door. Vincent let him go, thinking nothing of it. He quickly regretted his inaction when he suddenly heard the plane's engines start up.

"My god, he's stealing the plane!!" cried out Shera as she hurried over to the front door to warn Cid while Vincent rushed to the back of the house with his gun drawn.

The next few moments were spent in utter confusion.

Vincent reached the backyard just as Palmer was ready to take off in the plane. The moment he saw the gunslinger, the fat little man took out a pistol and started shooting at him, infuriating Vincent beyond measure.

The dark gunman shot the pistol out of the other man's hand and jumped onto the plane just as Avalanche made it to the backyard. Vincent grabbed the fat man by the neck, lifting him out of the cockpit with his clawed hand and hurling him onto the path of an oncoming Shinra truck as it drove by the house.

Cloud jumped onto the aircraft just as it started moving, taking command of the plane in an attempt to stop it. When it became obvious it wasn't stopping, he ordered the rest of Avalanche to hop onto the wings of the small propeller plane. Cid came rushing out of his house a moment later, grabbing onto the tail of his plane just as it lifted off the ground.

Shinra troops exited the trucks and started firing at the plane under the President's order, managing to hit the tail of the plane as it started flying over the ocean.

The airplane started spinning uncontrollably towards the water despite Cloud's best effort to try and stabilize it, everyone onboard screaming and crying and holding on for their lives. Red slipped off the wing at one point, narrowly escaping death when Vincent reflectively grabbed him in midair, securing the both of them onto the plane using only his claw.

Cloud managed to regain control at the very last moment, bringing the plane down roughly and skidding to a stop in the middle of the ocean.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

"Shit! Goddamn fucking shit!!..." Cid had been muttering obscenities for the better part of the evening, the pilot trying in vain to fix his prized plane as they drifted aimlessly in the middle of the ocean. "Goddamn piece of junk won't fly no more…" He sat down on one of the wings with his feet dangling in the water, looking up at the few stars that had begun to shine in the sky.

"Can we still use it as a boat?" asked Cloud, still sitting in the cockpit.

"Do whatever the fuck you want, Spike…" said Cid angrily around his cigarette. "Looks like I'm stuck with you guys for a while, so you might as well tell me what the fuck it is you and your friends are up to…"

"We're going after a man named Sephiroth. Eventually, we'll have to take care of Rufus Shinra also…" Cloud smiled in triumph as he started the plane, the engine purring without any difficulty. Thankfully, it hadn't been damaged by the landing.

Cid laughed. "Going after Shinra, huh? What the hell… Sign me up! I've had enough of that goddamn company…"

"Hey Cloud… Can I pick the direction?" asked the young ninja seemingly out of the blue. Yuffie had been starring at the horizon for a while now, facing towards the west. "Could we go west for a while…?" she asked, pointing out the direction for Cloud. Having no other destination in mind and seeing no harm in indulging the girl, Cloud turned the Little Bronco around until it faced west, setting it to autopilot.

"It might be a while before we reach any land, so we might as well sleep for a few hours," said the leader of Avalanche as he stretched and got out of the cockpit, lying down on one of the wings to sleep. The others soon followed his lead, huddling onto the wings of the plane to rest.

Vincent fell asleep almost as soon as he closed his eyes, the exhaustion of the past few days coupled with the gentle rocking motion of the plane quickly causing him to drift into oblivion.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

**Author's note:**_ Nothing to say except for the fact that it's one in the morning and I'm tired as hell…_

_Thank you to the following for reviewing: _Sona, Dragonlady2000-15,_ and _Pieling.

_Hope everyone likes this chapter. _;)

'_Til next time!!_


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII. Final Fantasy 7, the storyline and its characters belong solely to Square-Enix. **

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

**Chapter 9**

"_Vincent…" The woman in his arms moaned his name breathily next to his ear, her warm breath against his skin sending shivers down his back. He lowered his lips to the crook of her neck, depositing feather-soft kisses against her flustered skin. She slowly ran her fingers through his short-cropped hair, moaning his name once more as her eyes closed in bliss. His lips found hers as he slid his hands under her blouse, eager to feel her skin against his. _

_Vincent deepened the kiss, passionately exploring every inch of her warm, inviting mouth with his tongue. He moaned hungrily against her lips, the taste of her nearly driving him insane with lust. This wasn't enough. He needed more. _

_His hands came up between them, his fingers clumsily undoing the buttons to her blouse as he felt her own smaller hands tugging impatiently at his blue suit jacket. He nearly ripped her bra in his haste to remove it, letting the flimsy material drop to the ground with the blouse before doing the same with his jacket and shirt a moment later. _

_His arms snaked around her tiny waste possessively, bringing her closer to him. He ended the kiss almost regretfully, looking down at the angel in his arms through half-closed lids. _

"_Lucrecia…" He purred her name lovingly, smiling when she finally opened her cobalt blue eyes and looked up dreamily at him. His smile was short-lived however as his lover suddenly gasped, her face contorting in fear. Confusion and fear flooded over the Turk when she suddenly became hysterical, struggling against his hold and screaming at him to let her go. _

"_Lucrecia, what's wrong…?" he pleaded to know, his voice laced with worry. He couldn't understand what would cause her to suddenly be so frightened of him. "Tell me, please…" He grabbed her by the shoulders, shaking her lightly to try and get her to answer him. She wrenched herself free of him with a pained cry, tears running down her face as she clutched her arms tightly in front of her in a vague attempt to preserve what was left of her modesty. Her eyes grew wide with horror when he took a tentative step towards her. _

"_MONSTER!! STAY AWAY FROM ME!!" she cried out, taking a step away from him. _

_His heart squeezed painfully in his chest at hearing such hurtful words of rejection coming from the one he loved. He took another step forward, reaching out to try and grab her arm before she could flee only to realize something was terribly wrong with his hand. Where there had been flesh only moments ago, there was now golden metal twisted into a parody of a hand. He looked at it with unadulterated horror, realizing the thing was dripping with blood. Looking up again, he could see that Lucrecia was bleeding, the blood running freely down her arm from a horrible gash on her shoulder. _

_An anguished cry escaped his lips as he realized what he had done. He dropped to his knees, fisting his right hand in his now long hair in disbelief. "What's happening? What's wrong with me…?"_

_Hojo suddenly appeared behind Lucrecia and she ran up to him, sobbing uncontrollably. "There there, darling," cooed Hojo as he embraced his distressed wife. "He won't bother us anymore, I promise…" With that, he lifted his right hand up to reveal a gun, leveling it at the horror-struck Vincent before firing point-blank, a sadistic smile etched on his face…_

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

Vincent woke with a start, heart racing and breathing hard as adrenaline coursed through his veins. He sat up quickly, scanning the darkness around him as if expecting to find Hojo still looming over him with that blasted gun. The sight of the dark ocean all around and his sleeping companions by his side quickly reminded him of where he was and he calmed down, realizing it had only been a dream.

"…Just a dream…" he whispered aloud, almost as if to convince himself it was true.

"A dream…? Sounded more like a nightmare if you ask me…" Vincent looked over to the other side of the small plane to find Yuffie staring at him from where she sat on the edge of the wing. He hadn't noticed anyone else was awake besides him. She got up and tiptoed over to him, carefully stepping over the sleeping Avalanche members in between them.

"You looked really freaked out, you know," she said in a hushed voice as she sat down next to him. "You were twitching real bad and moaning some name over and over… 'Lu-something'…" She furrowed her brows together, trying to recall the name.

"Lucrecia…" The name tumbled off his lips before he could stop himself.

"Yeah, that's it! Lucrecia!" she said, her face lighting up. "So, is she someone you know or something?" The young girl seemed almost mischievous as she asked her next question. "A _girlfriend_ maybe…?"

"Shouldn't you be sleeping…?" asked Vincent instead of answering, trying to steer the conversation away from that touchy subject.

The young ninja suddenly became nervous, her eyes shifting to and fro as she rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly. "Huh…Yeah, well… I was feeling too woozy to sleep is all… Motion sickness and all that, you know…?" She laughed nervously. "Well, I feel better now so I guess I should try and catch up on my zees…" With that, she got back up and hurried over to her previous place, lying down quickly to get some sleep.

Vincent found the girl's behavior to be very suspicious. She had flat out lied to him about the reason she was up, he knew, but he couldn't figure out why. Deciding it was probably best to just forget about the girl's odd antics, the gunman lied back down on the wing. He found that he wasn't tired anymore and so he simply laid there with his eyes wide open, gazing at the crescent moon shining overhead.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

After spending the night drifting across the ocean, the group had finally reached land in the early morning hours, coming ashore on a deserted stretch of beach. While helping the others drag the makeshift boat out of the water so it wouldn't get washed away, Cid noticed that his materia had gone missing. No sooner had he informed the others about this, Yuffie jumped from the plane and took off running without a word of explanation. Not that they really needed an explanation at this point to understand what had happened…

"_**GODDAMN THIEF!! YOU'D BETTER PRAY WE DON'T CATCH YOU 'CAUSE THINGS ARE GONNA GET UGLY IF WE DO!!...**"_ Barret was livid with rage as he and the others ran after Yuffie along the beach, screaming and cursing at the young ninja as she ran off with the group's hard-earned materia. Vincent was in the lead with Cloud and Red, quickly gaining ground on the double-crossing adolescent.

Unfortunately for Avalanche and fortunately for Yuffie, they suddenly found themselves being intercepted by a group of five Shinra soldier's patrolling the area.

"Shit! What the fuck are _they _doing all the way out here?!" Cid brought out his spear in front of him, giving the newly arrived Shinra soldiers a nasty glare.

"What the…?! You're not the ones we were looking for…" said the first soldier as he came to a stop in front of the group, sounding almost disappointed.

"Never mind that..." said a second soldier as he gave the group a quick look-over. "I think that's the terrorist group everyone's been after! Grab them!!" With that, the soldiers raised their guns and started approaching the group, intent on arresting them.

"We don't have time for this…" said Cloud coldly, rushing forward and knocking out the nearest soldier with the flat of his sword. Tifa ran alongside him, punching a second soldier square in the face before delivering a roundhouse kick to the side of his head, rendering him unconscious.

The three remaining soldiers panicked upon seeing their companions so easily defeated and opened fire on the group. Cloud quickly brought his broad sword up in front of him and Tifa to shield them from the hail of bullets while the others dove for cover behind a washed-up shipwreck nearby.

Vincent and Barret both rose up behind the wreckage, bringing their guns up to return fire. Two of the soldiers found themselves riddled with bullets from Barret's machinegun while Vincent brought the last one down with a precise shot through the heart.

"Oh God! Cloud, you're bleeding!!" Tifa's horrified statement had the others rushing back to their leader's side.

"It's just a flesh wound Tifa, I'll be fine…" Cloud had put his sword away and was now holding on to his left bicep where he had been shot, crimson blood running through his fingers.

Aeris came up in front of Cloud. "Let me see," she said with authority, pulling his hand away from the wound to inspect it. "Well it doesn't look too bad, but I think the bullet's still there. I'm going to have to take it out before I can bandage you up. Just keep applying pressure on it for now." She looked over Cloud's shoulder and called Barret over. "Barret, give me your backpack. I think there's a pair of pliers in it that I could use to extract the bullet."

Aeris took the backpack when Barret handed it to her and dumped its entire contain onto the sand, kneeling down with Tifa to rummage through the pile of stuff in search of the pliers. They came up empty handed. "That's funny, I was sure we had bought a pair of pliers in Nibelheim…" said Aeris, puzzled. "Where's the other bag? Maybe it in that one…"

"Huh… I think Yuffie was the one carrying it, Aeris…" said Cait Sith as he looked down at the girl. "She probably took off with it…"

"Oh that's just great!" Tifa got up, frustrated with the whole situation. "Now how are we supposed to get the bullet out?"

"Let me try…" Vincent, who had been standing quietly next to the shipwreck with his arms crossed, walked over to the group and grabbed hold of Cloud's injured arm with his right hand, his claw hovering over the bullet hole. He heard the girls gasp and Cid swear behind him as they realized what he was about to do, but he ignored them. Vincent locked eyes with the blue eyed leader, waiting for his approval before proceeding any further. Cloud nodded, bracing himself against the pain to come.

"Hold still…" said the gunslinger warningly, tightening his hold on Cloud's arm before plunging two of his wickedly pointed fingers into the wound, causing it to bleed even more. Cloud grunted painfully as Vincent moved his index and thumb around, trying to locate the projectile. After a few intense seconds, he finally pulled his fingers back out, the blood covered slug held tightly between them.

Letting the mangled bullet drop in the sand, Vincent moved aside so Aeris could finish taking care of Cloud. The girl used her healing powers on his wound, managing to stop most of the bleeding by doing so. She then cleaned and dressed what was left of the wound while Tifa and Barret picked up the forgotten contents of the backpack from the ground. Less then two minutes later, they were ready to go.

"Where do you suppose she went?" asked Red, tilting his head in wonder.

"She was heading north, so we might as well go that way for now…" answered Tifa as she pointed out the direction Yuffie had taken.

"All right, let's get going," said Cloud, taking the lead. "Yuffie has a huge head start, so we're going to have to hurry if we want to catch her." With that, he hurried over to the path Yuffie had apparently taken, the rest of Avalanche quickly following after him.

Vincent trailed some way behind the group, unnoticed as always. When he was certain the others weren't looking, the gunslinger brought his blood covered claw up to his face and stared at it for a moment, before finally giving in to his urge and licking his sharp fingers clean of the crimson substance.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

As their luck would have it, the continent they had landed on was crawling with monsters of all shapes and sizes. While normally this wouldn't have been too much of a problem for the group of experienced fighters, the fact that they didn't have any materia meant that they had to physically fight back every attack, which in turn increased their chances of getting injured. By the end of the first day, they had already run out of potions and were now relying heavily on Aeris to heal the party whenever one of them got hurt. The poor girl nearly collapsed from exhaustion when Cloud finally ordered the group to set up camp for the night.

Vincent was appointed night-watch for the second time since joining the group. Unlike the first time however, he found himself quite busy trying to fend off monsters every fifteen minutes or so, using only his claw so as not to wake the others. Vincent had intended to let Cloud sleep through his shift like he had previously but he ended up having to wake the leader up anyway so he could lend him a hand in keeping the monsters at bay.

The sun wasn't even up by the time they started traveling again. Cloud was pushing the group to its limit in his haste to retrieve their materia, disregarding any and every complaints voiced by his companions. By noon time, everyone save Cloud, Cait and Vincent seemed about ready to drop. Fortunately, Cloud spotted a village out in the distance soon after, gaining a sigh of relief from everyone. Feeling a surge of renewed energy, the group sped up, suddenly in a hurry to reach the village.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

The town turned out to be none other than Wutai, Yuffie's home land. Thinking the young ninja was probably hiding out somewhere in the village, Cloud decided they needed to separate so they could cover more ground in their search for the girl.

"Aeris, Red and Cait, I want you three to start searching down that street over there." Cloud pointed over to a street leading to the northern area of the village. "Barret, you and Cid are going to stay at the entrance and search the houses nearby. Don't forget the one on the hill over there. Tifa, Vincent, you two are coming with me. If anyone finds her, call the others on your PHS."

Vincent followed Cloud and Tifa around town as they searched for the young ninja, watching as the two of them questioned every villager they came across. Everyone inevitably gave them the exact same answer. Apparently, none of them had seen Yuffie or even knew a girl by that name. They all seemed overly nervous, keeping their answers as short as possible before scurrying away. Vincent was starting to suspect Yuffie might have warned the villagers about their arrival and asked them to lie about her whereabouts.

The three of them finally came across a tavern at the end of a street. Cloud pushed the door open, he and Tifa both stepping out of the sun to enter the relative obscurity of the bar. Vincent was about to follow but paused at the door, thinking he had heard something. He looked around the deserted square for a moment, but seeing nothing out of the ordinary he simply shrugged it off as his imagination and entered the building.

Inside, he was surprised to find his two companions being confronted by a young blond woman, her blue suit betraying her allegiance to the Turks. Vincent could see two more Turks sitting at a table in a far corner of the room, a red head and a bald guy, both men evidently inebriated.

"…I don't know how you and your friends got here and I don't care. This time you won't get away from us so easily. Get ready to die…" The blond woman raised her gun, aiming it at the two Avalanche members in front of her. Cloud took out his sword, he and Tifa preparing to defend themselves against the woman.

The two other Turks suddenly took interest in what was going on. The bald one moved to get up, but the disheveled red head motioned for him to sit back down before getting up himself, walking towards the group unhurriedly with his baton in hand. Sensing things were about to get out of hand, Vincent took out his gun, ready to take down all three Turks at a moment's notice.

"…Elena, you talk too much," said the red headed Turk as he walked up beside the blond woman, surprising everyone by casually taking the gun out of his partner's hands.

"W… W-what…? Reno, what're you doing?" Elena stammered out, staring with wide, unbelieving eyes at the man next to her.

"We're on vacation Elena. Now go sit down before you end up ruining it…"

Elena opened her mouth as if to protest only to close it a moment later. "Fine…" She glared coldly at Cloud and Tifa. "Consider yourselves lucky for now…" She then turned on her heels and stormed away towards their table. Reno gave the confused Avalanche members an annoyed look before shrugging nonchalantly, turning away from them to return to his two partners.

"What was that about?" whispered Tifa to Cloud as they exited the bar.

Cloud shrugged. "Beats me…"

The group started waking away from the bar but Vincent paused after taking only a few steps, certain he had heard something move again. He looked around, but still couldn't see anything. Vincent closed his eyes and concentrated on his hearing. He heard the sound again, a small, distinct shuffling noise nearby accompanied by barely audible breathing.

"Hey Vincent, are you coming?" Tifa called out to him, noticing the gunman's absence. Vincent opened his eyes and signaled for his two companions to remain quiet.

There was a row of large jars by the side of the tavern, and Vincent could now tell that the sound was coming from one of them. The gunman silently stepped up to the one in the middle. There was no mistaking it; someone was hiding in the waist-high container.

"I can hear you breathing…" announced the gunslinger to whoever was in the jar. He heard the person's breathing hitch fearfully. "Come out… Now…" His voice was calm and commanding, leaving no room for argument.

The jar's lid suddenly came flying at him, surprising the gunslinger enough to allow whoever was in the jar time to jump out and run past him. The person, who turned out to be Yuffie, didn't get very far however since Cloud and Tifa were blocking her path. She was trapped.

"This is as far as you get, Yuffie," said Cloud seriously as he took a step towards the girl, bringing his hand up to retrieve his sword.

"Hey, whoa!!" The young girl backed away from the menacing Avalanche leader, bringing her hands up in front of her defensively. "I'll give you back all of your materia, I swear!! There's no need to get physical…" said Yuffie pleadingly, still backing away slowly. She ended up backing right into Vincent still standing behind her. He gave the girl a stern look from over his cloak's collar as she looked up at him sheepishly. "Where is it…?" The girl jumped slightly when he asked her this.

"I… I don't have it on me… It's in my house…" said the young ninja hurriedly as she moved away from the tall gunslinger. She looked down at her feet, utterly defeated. "I can show you where it is, if you'll let me…"

Cloud put his sword away. "No more tricks, Yuffie," he said to the girl warningly. "I mean it…"

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

Yuffie led them to the house on the hill near the town entrance, her head hanging in shame all the way there. She unlocked the door and entered her home, holding the door open to allow the others entrance. The young girl then moved to the center of the room and stood there facing the group, guilt and remorse showing on her features.

"Could… Could I just explain to you guys why I did it?" asked the young girl suddenly, a hopeful note in her voice. When no one answered, she took that as a hint to continue. "Ever since we lost the war, the people in this town just haven't been the same… It's almost like they lost their identity… You see, Wutai used to be proud and strong, but now it's been reduced to a resort town for tourists… I thought that if I had enough materia, maybe I could…"

Cloud lost his patience and suddenly snapped at the girl. "Listen Yuffie, I don't care about any of that. Just give us our materia back and we'll be on our way…"

Yuffie said nothing for a moment, staring at Cloud with a hurt expression. Her face then hardened uncharacteristically as she headed towards a door to the side of the room. "They're in the basement, follow me…"

They followed her into the basement until she stopped in front of a room at the end of a hall. "They're in there…" she told them without looking up, pointing inside the room.

"Yuffie, there's nothing in here," said Tifa as she and the two others stepped to the middle of the empty room.

"They're hidden," answered the ninja at the door. "You have to hit the switch on the back wall over there."

Vincent looked back to the young girl warily. Something wasn't right. She had gone to all that trouble to steal their materia; why would she give it up so easily? She suddenly looked up and locked eyes with him for half a second, giving the gunslinger an apologetic look just as Cloud reached the back wall. Suddenly realizing what was about to happen, Vincent tried to warn the others but it was already too late. Cloud tripped the switch, causing a heavy metal cage to drop down on the group.

"You want your precious materia back, Cloud?" yelled the ninja angrily from the door. "Then go find it yourself, ya big jerk!!" With that, she took off running. Cloud called the others up on his PHS immediately, telling them where they were so they could come free them.

Vincent saw red as he paced the width of the cage, itching to get out and give chase to the infuriating girl. He couldn't believe that he had so easily fallen for one of her tricks again. Vincent felt angry at himself for having ever trusted the girl. She was the only one of the group that he had warmed up to, since she was always traveling by his side and talking to him even though he didn't talk back much. He had even gone as far as turn a blind eye on her petty thefts, something he now regretted doing since she had ended up stealing from them. That little thief had some nerve to think she could just gain his trust and then turn around and betray him without having to pay the consequences.

Dimly, it registered to him that Tifa was trying to gain his attention. He turned his fiery gaze towards the girl, causing her to take a step back from him. "Vincent, please calm down," she said, trying to pacify him. "You're glowing…"

Vincent looked down at himself, surprised to find that he was indeed glowing a faint red. He closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths to calm himself, repressing back the rage that had unwittingly awakened his demonic blood. When he was in full control of his senses, he opened his eyes again and leaned against the cage with his arms crossed to wait for the others to arrive.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

Barret and Cid ended up being the ones rescuing the three imprisoned Avalanche members since they were already in the area near Yuffie's house. About fifteen minutes later, the five of them were traveling towards the northern part of the village to meet up with Aeris, Red and Cait. Aeris had called Cloud a few moments after they had been freed saying she had seen Yuffie and another girl getting kidnapped by Don Corneo and his goons.

"Cloud!" Aeris called out his name as soon as she saw him arriving with the rest of the group. Cloud ran up to the worried girl. "We tried to stop him from taking Yuffie, but we ended up getting attacked by a group of soldiers and he escaped. I think the soldiers were after Corneo… He took Yuffie and that other girl up the mountain…" Aeris pointed to her left to a path leading up to the carved mountain known as DaChao. She looked back at her leader with pleading eyes, her hands clasped together in front of her. "Cloud, we have to rescue Yuffie… There's no telling what he'll do to her…"

Before Cloud had a chance to answer, the two male Turks from the bar arrived out of nowhere and ran up to the group. Reno stopped in front of Aeris, ignoring the threatening glare Cloud was sending him.

"Yo… That other girl you say he took, did she happen to have blond hair and wearing a blue suit?" Aeris nodded, causing Reno's green eyes to harden.

"Elena…" The bald man muttered their missing colleague's name with a hint of worry in his voice.

"Let's go Rude," said the red head as he turned towards his companion. "We'll give them a taste of what it means to mess with the Turks…"

Rude nodded gravely and took off running towards DaChao. Reno started towards the path as well but stopped after taking only a few steps, turning back towards Avalanche. He regarded the group coolly, bringing his baton up to rest against his shoulder. "He took one of your girls too, right?" he asked, staring pointedly at Cloud. "How 'bout we call a truce for now? You know, until we get the girls back…" Cloud nodded in agreement. "Cool… Just stay out of our way, and we'll stay out of yours." With that, Reno took off after his partner.

"So Spike, let me get this straight…" said Cid as he watched the Turks disappear down the path. "Not only are we gonna rescue that goddamn brat after everything she's put us through, but we have to play nice with the enemy while doing it?"

"We don't have a choice." answered Cloud. "If we don't do this, we'll never get our materia back…"

"Damnit…" The pilot took one last drag from his cigarette before throwing it to the ground angrily, lighting up a new one a second later. "Well, what're we waiting the fuck around for? Let's get this over with." He took off towards the path, muttering nonsense under his breath. The rest of the group followed after him a moment later.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

"Let them go Corneo, and we might consider letting you live…" said Cloud, his threatening voice echoing off the mountain. He was standing with his sword drawn on a giant carved hand high above the ground, facing the perverted bastard known as Don Corneo. The rest of Avalanche was standing behind their leader, weapons at the ready.

Corneo laughed. "Now why would I go and do something silly like that? I didn't even get to have fun with them, yet…" He roamed lust filled eyes over his two struggling captives strapped to the eyes of a colossal carved face.

"Stop looking at me like that you _perv_!!" said Yuffie angrily as she struggled with renewed vigor against her bindings. "Gawd! I knew I should've paid more attention to those rope escape lessons!!"

"You pig…" uttered Tifa angrily as she took a few steps forward, disgusted beyond measure by the deranged man.

"How about I let you play with my pet for a while? That way I'll have plenty of time to play with these two…" Corneo smiled in self-assurance. "_RAPPS_!!" No sooner had he called out the name, a large dragon flew down from the clouds, the sound of its large flapping wings filling the air all around.

It hovered above the group, close enough so it could hit them with its whip-like tail but too far for anyone who didn't have a long range weapon to attack. Since they still didn't have their materia back, this meant that Barret and Vincent were the only real offense the group had against Corneo's pet.

Both gunmen opened fire on the dragon, hitting it multiple times in the chest and wings. This only seemed to enrage the creature further.

"Barret! Vincent! Try aiming for the head!" hollered Cloud over the sound of the creature's wings, ducking to the side when the dragon's tail came crashing down towards him.

Barret shot a few rounds at the flying creature's head but couldn't manage to land a hit. It was too swift for him. "Damnit!" Barret cursed as he hit the dirt, narrowly missing getting hit by the dragon. "Cloud, it's too damn fast! We're gonna have to find another…"

"_BANG!!_" The dragon fell limply from the sky, a bullet hole now adorning the center of its forehead. It landed with a thud less then a meter away from Vincent as he calmly reloaded his still smoking gun.

Barret was too dumbstruck for a second to say anything. "…never mind…" he said finally, picking himself up from the ground.

"Nice aim," said a voice from behind the group. They turned to find Reno casually making his way up the statue's arm. "Ever considered joining the Turks?" he asked the tall gunslinger whose only response was a dark, yet somewhat amused glare.

"Reno!! Get me down from here!!" yelled Elena from where she was suspended.

"In a minute…" Reno's green eyes found Don Corneo cowering at the end of one of the statue's fingers. He started walking towards him.

"…T…the…the Turks…" Corneo looked about ready to piss himself as he watched Reno slowly advancing towards him.

"Don't act so surprised," said the red headed Turk coldly. "You knew this day would come eventually after you leaked those Shinra secrets… The fact that you kidnapped one of our own only means you're gonna die sooner then expected…"

"D-Don't come any closer," said Corneo as he took out a small remote from his pocket. "If I press this button, the girls die…" He smirked when the Turk stopped his advance, feeling suddenly braver with his newly found leverage.

A gun shot resounded and Corneo suddenly found himself with a mangled hand and a shattered remote. Crying out in pain, the perverted man stepped back and slipped off the giant finger, narrowly escaping death by grabbing hold of the edge with his left hand. Satisfied that the man no longer posed a threat, Vincent holstered his prized gun.

Reno walked over to where Corneo was clinging for his life. He stepped onto the man's fingers, grinning down at the man. "This will be over quick…"

"Oh God please no!!" sobbed the desperate man. "Why are you doing this? I've got money… I could give you lots and lots of money!! And women too…"

"Heheheh…" Reno chuckled at the man's attempts to bribe him. He pressed down harder on the man's finger to get him to shut up. "Listen up!! You wanna know why we're doing this?" Corneo whimpered when he saw Reno smile. "Because it's our job…" Without further delay, Reno lifted his foot from Corneo's hand, causing him to fall screaming to his doom.

"Alright Rude, get those two down from there so we can leave," yelled Reno to his partner that had appeared on top of the statue's head. Reno's cell phone suddenly rang.

"Reno speaking," answered the red head into his phone. "… Yes… Yes… We'll get right to it." He hung up, looking at Cloud with a strange expression. "…Seems we have orders to catch you guys."

Cloud reached for his sword, but Reno simply smirked and shrugged. "Too bad for them… We're off duty today." The Avalanche members watched the Turk as he made his leave, disappearing down the statue's arm.

Vincent walked over to the edge of the hand to stare at the suspended ninja. "So…" he said as he narrowed his eyes dangerously at the girl, causing her to visibly pale. "What do we do with her now…?" 

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

**Author's note:**_ Heheh! I'm on a role lately… Two huge chapters practically in the same week!! I guess I might be trying to compensate since I won't be able to update again until the end of April… Homework, exams, projects… You all know the drill. _

_I'm not sure if this was the best spot to stop this chapter, but it was starting to get really long and I had to stop somewhere. Meh… All in all, I'm pretty satisfied with this chapter. _

_Much thanx to _Pieling_ and _Sona_ for reviewing chapter 8, and _H.Tool07_ for reviewing chapter 7._

_Enjoy!! _;)


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII. Final Fantasy 7, the storyline and its characters belong solely to Square-Enix. **

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

**Chapter 10 **

"Here's the last of it..." Yuffie handed out the last of the materia she had stashed all over her house to Cloud, who in turn gave back each colorful orb to its rightful owner. He also divided up the materia Yuffie had been allowed to keep during their travels, much to the girl's grief. Nothing was said as the group equipped their materia into the proper slots of their armour and weapons, not that this surprised Yuffie much. Ever since they had rescued her from Don Corneo, they hadn't said a word to her other than to pry a promise out of her that she would return all of their materia immediately upon returning to her home. Not that they needed to. It was the least she could do, considering how they had just saved her life and all.

When they had rescued her, she had at first been afraid of what the consequences would be for her treason, expecting at the very least to receive a good scolding from the group. She gulped, thinking of that scary look Vincent had given her while she was still tied up on DaChao. Luckily for her they hadn't done or said anything, and although Yuffie knew she probably shouldn't complain considering how angry they probably were with her at the moment, somehow she found their refusal to talk to her worse than anything they could have done to her. They wouldn't listen when she tried to apologise, and refused to believe her when she tried to explain the reasoning behind her actions. Apparently they had a hard time believing her story about her being a Wutainese princess out to save her people. How odd...

Now she watched them as they prepared to leave, already heading out the front door. She prepared to follow suit, content to endure their silent treatment towards her for the moment, thinking this was their idea of punishment. However she soon found out that this wasn't what they had in mind for her. Just as she was about to exit her house, she found her route cut off by Cloud, the swordsman standing in the doorway with his arms crossed, a scowl marring his features.

"Where do you think you're going?" he asked her, his voice harsher than usual as he denied the young girl passage.

Yuffie's blinked in confusion as she locked eyes with the group's leader, not understanding his question. "What do you mean, 'where am I going'? I'm coming with you guys of course!" She tried to move past him, but he just cut her off again.

"No you're not. You deceived us Yuffie; used us to get to our materia," said the blond man, shaking his head slowly to emphasise his disappointment. "I can't let you come with us." He watched as comprehension fell over the girl's face, her mouth falling open in disbelief of what was happening. He continued, his voice softening somewhat. "You stole from us Yuffie. After everything we've been through as a team, as _friends_, you still lied in our faces and stole from us."

"B-but... I said I was sorry..." Yuffie's eyes started to water despite her best attempt to hold the tears back. "I said I was _sorry!_"Her voice broke as she said that last part. "Guys?..." Her eyes searched pass Cloud, trying to find some support from those standing outside, but they all avoided her gaze, choosing instead to look at the ground or at each other. "Please don't do this..." she pleaded with them.

"Aeris... Tifa..." Her voice was barely more than a whisper as she called out to the ones she considered her best friends, both girls finally looking up at her with heartbreaking expressions. She could see sympathy shining in their eyes, but there was also distrust and hurt. Yuffie quickly realized they weren't going to come to her defense.

She looked back to Cloud and grabbed his arm just as he was starting to move away, holding on to him as tightly as she could out of desperation. "Please don't go!! Cloud, I screwed up I know... I promise I won't steal from you guys again. I'm sorry I dropped that cage on you guys, even if you were being a jerk. I'll listen to you from now on... I'll be good I swear, just... _Please_ don't leave me behind!!" A tear was slowly trailing down her left cheek, but she didn't notice or care. All she could think about was that her friends were abandoning her. Her best friends in the whole world were just going to leave her behind, and it was all her fault. "_I need you guys... You're my best friends..._" Her voice was barely more than a whisper, so weak that even Cloud, who was closest to her, had a hard time catching her words.

Cloud's larger hand was over Yuffie's now, the blue eyed leader of Avalanche seemingly hesitating on what to do as he watched the normally energetic and easygoing adolescent bare her soul to them. She seemed so vulnerable at that moment that he nearly lost is resolve, but not quite. He knew this had to be done; else things would only get worse in the future. Yuffie wouldn't learn anything if he simply backed down now and allowed her to keep traveling with them. Sooner or later she would fall back to her old habits and steal from them again, and they would have to go through all of this all over again. He had already discussed this with the rest of the group while Yuffie had still been tied up on Mount DaChao, out of earshot of the young girl, and they had all agreed that this was the best solution for everyone.

Finally after a few unbearably long moments, he gave her hands a small squeeze before gently prying them from his arm. He took a step back from her, his body already half-turned to leave. "You're right Yuffie, we _are_ your friends." The young girl looked almost hopeful for a moment, but he quickly went on before she had a chance to say anything. "We're friends, and that's what makes it so much worse. You should have thought about that before you decided to double-cross us." His blue gaze was locked on her stormy gray eyes, watching as the hope he had seen there a few seconds ago fled, leaving the girl looking more broken then he had ever seen her before. Finally he couldn't take it anymore and he looked away, turning completely away from her so he wouldn't have to face that look again. "Good-bye Yuffie," he said with finality, before he started to walk away.

Yuffie watched as he took the lead as always, quickly walking towards the stairs leading away from her property. The others seemed much more reluctant to leave, looking over their shoulder at her as one by one Cid, Barret, Red and Cait Sith followed after Cloud. Aeris didn't follow immediately, seemingly hesitating on what to do. Finally, she rushed over to her young friend, giving her a quick, emotion-filled hug. Yuffie barely reacted at all to this, too shocked to completely understand what was happening. Finally the older girl pulled back, whispering a quick farewell before rushing after Tifa who had been waiting behind for her.

As she watched the two girls disappear down the stairs, Yuffie sank to her knees. The only one left now was Vincent, as he was usually the last to follow. Only he wasn't leaving; just standing there looking at her with that unreadable expression on his face. She didn't dare look him in the eyes, afraid of what she'd find there. Finally he turned away from her, long strides quickly carrying him away. She couldn't bear to see him disappear down those stairs like the others, and so she looked away.

Yuffie hadn't been this confused in years. When she had set off on her quest to save Wutai all those months ago, she had considered everyone she crossed paths with to be nothing more than a potential victim for her to steal materia from. She hadn't planned on making any friends, and yet she had. Now it felt as though she was being torn up inside, caught in between the need she felt for her new found friends and the duty she knew she had towards her people. Part of her wanted to run after the group, beg them to forgive her and let her come with them, and yet another part of her was telling her that this was for the best, that being with them would only sidetrack her again from the duties she had towards her beloved Wutai.

The young girl nearly groaned in frustration as she shifted to sit with her back against the door frame, not caring if her shorts got dirty in the process. She honestly didn't want to have to choose between her friends and Wutai. Why couldn't she have both? She simply didn't know what to do anymore, and so she cried, sobbing in complete abandon.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

She just had to start crying, didn't she?

Vincent had only made it down a few steps when Yuffie's first heartwrenching sobs had reached his ears, stopping him in his tracks. The others were already down the stairs and moving out of his line of sight, but he couldn't bring himself to move from that spot. Try as he might, he couldn't ignore that distressed sounds coming from the girl they'd left kneeling in the dusty courtyard behind him. He just couldn't stand to hear a woman cry, whether it be the silent tears Lucrecia tried so hard to hide from him in the past, or the full-blown breakdown Yuffie was having at that moment. He always felt so useless and awkward in those types of situations, never knowing what it is he should say or do to make things right.

Looking over his shoulder at his young comrade, he tried to remind himself that he was angry with her, that she had betrayed his trust and that those tears were well deserved, but it was no use. His conscience wouldn't allow him to simply walk away. Sighing wearily, the gunslinger went about retracing his steps, trying not to think about how awkward it had been for him the last time he had seen her like this.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

She nearly jumped in surprise as she caught a flash of red from the corner of her eye, looking up just in time to see Vincent walk towards her with intent. Before she had any time to react, the gunslinger had grabbed her by the upper-arm and pulled her to her feet as gently as he could manage using only one hand, releasing her quickly once he was satisfied she would stand on her own. Yuffie was confused by his actions, wondering what it is he wanted with her. As she watched him watching her, she couldn't help but notice how troubled he seemed at that moment, only adding to her confusion. It almost seemed as if he was hesitating on what to do, which in Yuffie's mind was an absolute impossibility. Vincent Valentine _never_ hesitated for anything.

"You shouldn't cry, Yuffie," he finally said after a moment, Vincent's voice as tense as his body seemed to be at that moment. It was a simple statement, nothing more than a clumsy attempt at comfort from a man with very little experience in that domain, but it only managed to make the already emotionally drained adolescent angry. Before he had a chance to add anything, she blew up in his face.

" _GAWD VINCENT! IF YOU'RE GOING TO LECTURE ME, DON'T BOTHER!! I DON'T WANT TO HEAR IT!!" _The young girl's cheeks were flushed red as she screamed at him through clenched teeth, too busy venting out her frustration at first to notice how Vincent winced slightly. Remembering about her friend's sensitive hearing, the girl took a deep breath, shaky breath before continuing at a more decent volume.

"Just leave me alone Vinnie, I'm not in the mood for a speech right now. Cloud's already said everything there was to say, so what's the point in adding something now?" She sniffed, wiping furiously at the tears still trailing down her face. "Besides, why should I listen to anything you have to say right now? You guys sure as hell didn't listen to me when I tried to explain myself earlier! Nobody _ever_ listens to me!! Why would they? Why would _you_?"

She poked at his chest repeatedly as she spoke, as hard as she could, her voice laced with accusations and hurt. She thought this would annoy him, but for some reason he allowed this abuse to his person to go on without consequence, his expression unreadable once more. Finally she grew tired of doing so and opted to cross her arms in defiance instead.

"My own cowardly father wouldn't listen to me when I said I was going to be the one to save Wutai. Everyone thinks I'm just some kleptomaniac kid acting out for attention, but that's not true! I lie and I steal because I _have _to, because it's the only thing I could think of to help Wutai!!" Her voice had lost most of its edge, her next words barely more than a whisper. "Because if I don't try to do something, no one else will..." Exhaustion seemed to crash down on her now, her righteous anger from moments before burning away into nothing and leaving her feeling completely drained. She sighed defeatedly, looking away as fresh tears escaped from her eyes. "Just go Vincent, please. I don't have the heart for this anymore."

She didn't say anything more after that, and for a few minutes neither did he, the gunman seemingly lost in his thoughts. She wished he would just get this over with already; just say what he had to say and leave. Or even better, just leave without saying anything. Wouldn't that be grand? Of course, she never was that lucky to begin with, and so she wasn't surprised when she heard his deep voice cut through the silence.

"You're wrong, Yuffie." He didn't elaborate immediately, waiting until she looked at him once more before continuing. "You say we don't listen to you, but you're wrong. Ever since we've met, I've done nothing but listen to you each and every time you felt the need to speak to me, no matter how trivial the subject." He sounded genuinely hurt by her accusation, and Yuffie couldn't help but feel guilty. She felt the need to apologize to him, but wasn't given the chance as Vincent just kept on talking. "The problem isn't that we don't listen to you, Yuffie. The real problem lies in the fact that you don't _talk_."

Yuffie couldn't believe her ears. "What are you talking about? All I ever did is talk..."

"No Yuffie, you don't!" Vincent cut her off sharply. "At least, not about the things that really matter. How can you expect any of us to listen to you if you're not willing to tell us what it is you want us to hear? Instead of asking for help from the ones you so selfishly call friends, you decided instead to use us like peons in your little scheme." His voice had remained calm and even, his face voice of emotions, and yet the intensity with which his red gaze bore into her made Yuffie feel as though he were yelling at her at that moment. "Trust is the backbone of any good team Yuffie, the foundation with which it stands. Trust is not something I give out freely. I chose to trust you for the sake of this team, only to have you betraying that trust at the first occasion. It makes it very hard for anyone of us to believe you now that you're suddenly willing to talk and tell us the so called truth."

All she could do was gape at him for a few moments, before she found her voice one more. "Oh god Vinnie, I'm so sorry... I didn't mean to hurt you guys; I was just trying to make things better for everyone here..." she said finally, her voice quivering with barely controlled emotion as the extent of Vincent's words sank in. She lowered her gaze to the patch of dirt between them, unable to look him in the eyes any longer. "I did a great job didn't I, huh?" A dry laugh escaped her lips before she could stop it, her lips quirking into a sarcastic grin. "Not only did I not accomplish the things I had set out to do, but I somehow managed to ruin the one good thing I had going for myself in the process." Her smile faltered as fresh tears slid down her cheeks. "I guess I can't blame you guys for not wanting me anymore... you must all hate me now..."

She heard a tired sigh coming from the man in front of her. A gloved hand came up between them, hesitating in midair for a moment before finally coming to rest on the young girl's shoulder. "We don't hate you Yuffie, we're just angry and disappointed about what you did. You're a good person at heart, and I respect that you would put the good of your people above all else, but your actions were misguided. As honorable as your intentions were, the means by which you sought to reach your goal were anything but. Had you told us the truth from the start, all of this could have been prevented." His voice was so soft, his touch so gentle, almost as if he were afraid to break her. Yuffie, while still upset, found solace in the fact that her friends didn't hate her despite what she had done.

Vincent finally removed his hand and took a step back, and Yuffie suddenly found herself griped with the irrational fear of being left alone. She rushed forward, catching the gunslinger by surprise, burying her face into his chest while her arms found their way around his waist. She felt him stiffen against her, but she didn't care. When he shifted a few seconds later she tightened her grip on him, thinking he was going to try and remove her from himself like he had the last time on Mount Nibel. Instead, she felt his arms hesitantly come up behind her, encircling her in a loose embrace while his cape slid forward over his shoulders and around her, shielding her from the world. He didn't say anything to her as she cried into his shirt, simply standing there like some sentinel while he patiently waited for her to collect herself.

The tears eventually stopped coming and she pulled back reluctantly from his embrace, feeling lighter then she had a few moments before, almost as if a weight had been lifted from her heart. She watched as he took a step back from her, straightening his now slightly damp shirt that had gone askew while she had clung to him. He wasn't looking at her and for a moment she feared she might have embarrassed him, but then she noticed his attention had shifted to the stairs. It suddenly occurred to her that Vincent had lingered with her for well over ten minutes. The others had probably noticed his absence by now and would no doubt be coming back for him. When he finally looked at her again, she knew what he was going to say before he said it.

"I have to go Yuffie. The others..."

"I know Vinnie," she cut him off, not needing to hear his explanation. She gave him a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "Just give me one more second, 'kay?"

He didn't respond to her question, but he didn't leave either so she took that as her cue to continue.

"What should I do now Vincent?" He didn't quite seem to understand what she was asking him, and so she elaborated further. "You said I was misguided. That I was trying to do the right thing, but not in the right way. I don't think I'm smart enough to figure out what the right way is on my own, so I was kinda hoping you'd just tell me what I should do before you leave." She hoped it wasn't too late for her to be asking for some much needed guidance.

He didn't answer her immediately, seemingly preferring to think her question over carefully before doing so. Finally he seemed to come to a decision, his eyes focusing on her once more. "If I were you, the first thing I would is make amends to the ones I wronged." Seemingly satisfied he had answered her question, he turned to leave.

"Make amends?" Yuffie didn't find that small bit of advice very helpful. If anything, she found it downright confusing. "I don't get it, Vincent. How in the word am I supposed to make amends when Cloud kicked me out of Avalanche? And what about Wutai? How is making amends going to help me bring back Wutai to its former self? What am I supposed to do, exactly?..." She kept bombarding his back with questions, and yet he just kept walking away. Finally she yelled out to him, irritated. "Damn it Vincent! Say _something_!!"

By that time, Vincent had already made it down the first few steps. He stopped momentarily and looked at her over his shoulder ever so slightly, his right eye the only part of his face visible to her. "You're smarter than you give yourself credit for Yuffie. I'm sure you'll figure it out on your own." With that said, he gazed forward once more and disappeared down the stairs.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

Vincent had set off looking for the others after his talk with Yuffie, hoping they hadn't made it too far without him. He found them almost immediately in a nearby street. They had turned back to retrieve him the moment they had noticed his absence, much as he had suspected they would. When questionned about his absence, Vincent remained tight lipped about what had transpired between him and Yuffie, and the others didn't push the issue.

They didn't leave Wutai immediately, instead scouring the narrow streets of the city in search of an item store. Their chase across the continent had taken a toll on their supplies and the group was running low on almost everything essentiel – especially potions and food – meaning they had to stock up on quite a few things before they could hope to leave.

Vincent, bringing up the rear as always, couldn't help but analyse his companions' body language as they walked through the streets: Shoulders slumped forward; eyes fixed to the ground; feet dragging. It wasn't hard to conclude that the group was feeling demoralized by their young friend's absence. The silence hanging over them like a shroud only seemed to emphasize on the fact that the one person who ususally filled in that silence with none stop chatter was no longer there to do so.

They eventually found themselves in the commercial district of Wutai, were most of the stores were located. After a quick scan of the area, Tifa singled out a small shop nearby. As the group filed up inside the small establishment, Vincent noticed Red lingering outside some distance away from the door, rubbing his muzzle vigorously with his paw as the others made their way in.

"If I were you my friend, I would remain outside..." warned the red furred feline as Vincent was about to enter after the others. The gunslinger gave his four legged companion a quizzical stare as he paused at the entrance momentarily, wondering about the odd warning and why he was the only one to have received it. Finding no sense to it, he disregarded Red and pushed the door open, noticing too late the strange smog that seemed to fill the entire room. No sooner had he entered the shop, Vincent found himself chocking for air, the potent smell of incense assaulting his highly sensitive senses to the point where he had no other choice but to leave the store immediately. Fighting to keep his composer, the gunslinger all but slammed the door behind him as he made his escape to fresh air.

Finally able to breathe easier, Vincent leaned against the doorframe, choosing to ignore his friend's obvious amusement as he heard Red chuckle lightly, a look that screamed 'don't say I didn't warn you' hetched on the feline's face. Content to wait outside for the rest of the team to finish restocking their supplies and confident that they would not require his or Red's assistance for such a trivial task, Vincent straigtened himself somewhat, settling more confortably against the wall of the building with arms crossed and eyes closed, and loosing himself to the privacy of his thoughts.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

"Are we sure we're doing the right thing?" It was Tifa who asked the question hanging over everyone's head. She just couldn't stand the tension any longer. She looked at Cloud as she asked this, her small pearly teeth worrying her lower lip in an unconscious display of anxiety and worry. The group had been making its way towards Wutai's only entrance, their progress made slower then it should have been by their heavy conscience. Now that Tifa had broken the uneasy silence, their dragging feet had slowed to a stop, seemingly unwilling to carry their owners any further.

"Is this the right thing to be doing?" She asked again, looking over to each of her companions and seeing the same unease displayed on all of their faces, their earlier resolve all but gone.

The only one who didn't seem worried at the moment was Vincent, but than again she could never tell what the tall gunslinger was thinking. He simply stood there at the back of the group with his arms crossed, seemingly lost in thought. His piercing red eyes locked with hers for just a moment before he turned his gaze back the way they came, but that one moment had been enough to make Tifa shiver slightly despite the heat. She still hadn't gotten over the little incident in the cage earlier, when Vincent's control had momentarily lapsed and she had felt the full weight of his demonic glare on her before the gunslinger had remembered himself and regained his composer. She wondered briefly if she would ever get over this side of him, before putting aside that train of thought and concentrating on the problem at hand.

"We've already gone over this Tifa," said Cloud as he turned fully to face his childhood friend. "We've all decided that this was the best course of action to take." There was resolve in his voice, but a slight furrowing of his brows denounced the doubts plaguing the blond leader's mind.

"I know that Cloud," said the martial artist, a soft sigh escaping her lips. "It's just that... That look she had when we left. I've never seen her like that before... She just seemed so..."

"Lost..." Aeris finished Tifa's sentence in a soft voice.

"Yeah," agreed Tifa, her shoulders slumping slightly. "She's just a kid," she added mostly to herself.

Barret, who was standing next to Cloud, seemed especially uncomfortable with that last comment, the imposing man squirming a bit as he kept shooting glances back towards Wutai. While most of the others probably thought the tough rebel couldn't care less for the girl they had left behind, she had known him long enough to know this was far from the case. It made her smile a bit to know that regardless of his rough exterior and harsh demeanor, deep down inside he was a caring and loving person. Not only that, but Barret was a father first and foremost. His behavior towards their young ninja companion had at times been quite similar to the way he was with his adoptive daughter, Marlene. After all, he wouldn't have wasted his time in scolding the adolescent everytime she got herself into trouble if he hadn't cared for her on some level. Tifa knew he was looking out for their young friend in his own way.

A dry chuckle brought everyone's attention back to Cid. "Woudn't worry myself too much over that brat if I were you, missy," said the would-be astronaut in between two puffs of his cigarette as he leaned against his spear. "Don't know much about that one, but if her goddamned behavior is anything to go by, I'd have to say the kid's all kinds of resourceful. She'll do just fine on her own."

"Cid's right," said Cloud, crossing his arms over his chest. He seemed more confident now that he had the pilot backing him up. "Yuffie was doing fine on her own when we found her. Besides, Wutai's her home. She belongs here."

Tifa wasn't all that convinced about that. Something the teenager had told them moments before they had left her behind was bothering her. She had said that they were the only good thing she had going for herself... Just as Tifa was about to comment on that, she found herself interrupted by Vincent.

"It seems we have some company..." remarked the gunslinger as he stared pointedly to a group of men walking towards them with intent. The rest of Avalanche were immediately on guard.

The man in the lead, who looked to be in his early fifties, had a particularly sturn expression hetched onto his face. He had dark hair streaked with gray at the temples and held back in a top-knot. While he was quite shorter then the two other men following closely behind and he had no visible weapon on him, the fine Wutainese formalwear the man was wearing coupled with the pride and discipline shining fiercely in his dark eyes left no doubt that this was the leader of the group.

Cloud walked over to the newcomers just as they reached the Avalanche members in order to greet them. He was not allowed the opportunity to do so however as the older man cut right to the chase.

"Where is she?" demanded the stranger impatiently in a thick Wutainese accent, looking to no one except Cloud. The other two men accompanying stood further back from the leader, their hands resting on the hilt of their katanas. It was apparent that they were bodyguards of some sort.

Confused, Cloud rubbed the back of his neck. "Where's who?" he asked the older man. He had never met any of these men before and had no way of knowing who the stranger was inquiring about.

"My truant daughter!" stated the man as if the answer was obvious. "Who else would I be looking for?" The Wutainese man looked around quickly, as if hoping to find the one he was looking for amongst them, before returning his attention once more to the Avalanche leader. "I was told she was seen with a group of troublemaking outlaws earlier today, which I can only assume meant you and your companions."

"Who the fuck are you calling outlaws?" Cid bristled at the other man's insult. He hadn't been around long enough with the group of rebels to know that most people would probably agree with the stranger's statement. The other man didn't react to Cid's outburst however, acting as if the pilot hadn't said anything at all. This only peeved him further. "Hey I'm talking to you! What are ya, fucking deaf?" He started walking over to Cloud and the other man, as if to confront him, but was stopped short when the Avalanche leader threw out his arm to block his way.

"Let me take care of this Cid," he stated simply to the newest member of their group, giving the chain-smoking pilot a meaningful look to get his message accross.

Cid shot the short Wutainese man a heated glare only to find that the stranger still refused to acknowledge his presence, as if the only one present was Cloud. Cid sniffed loudly and having seemingly decided that this wasn't worth his time, turned back to the rest of Avalanche, mumbling a string of colorful curses under his breath on the way back.

"Now," said Cloud as he turned his full attention back to the stranger. "How about you start by telling us who you are and who your daughter is, and then we'll decide if we can help you or not." Cloud's voice was all business now. He didn't trust this group of men much, and didn't want to give them anything until they had more information about the situation.

The older man's face darkened somewhat for a moment, obviously used at being obeyed without question and not liking having Cloud defy his authority by demanding information from him. He did not let his control slip however. Wutainese people were known to being highly disciplined, and this man was no exception to the rule.

The stranger took a long breath before speaking. "Very well, if you must know I am Lord Godo, ruler of Wutai and its people." Godo held his head high with pride as he said this. "As for my poor excuse for a _daughter_," his voice grew harsher as he said that last word, "her name is..."

"Yuffie!!" Aeris cried out the ninja's name before the Wutainese leader had a chance to finish his sentence, as the girl in question was running towards them, holding a small bag with one hand. Everyone present turned to see the young girl as she made a beeline for Godo, anger marring her features.

"How _dare _you confront my friends like that! You have no right!!" the red faced ninja stomped her foot for emphasis, wagging her right index finger in the older man's face as she yelled at him.

"So the rumors are true then," Godo cut in before the girl had a chance to continue, for all the world unimpressed with her current display. "You've banded up with these vagrant criminals who dare go against Shinra!! Have you forgotten the rules? You will bring nothing but trouble for Wutai!!" Disapproval rolled off him in waves as he toward over his daughter.

"Oh look who's talking! Mister 'let's-bow-down-to-Shinra-and-turn-Wutai-into-a-tourist-trap'!!"

The girl's father had lost most of his composure, his face just as red as his daughter's. "Why you insolent child..."

"I'm not done talking!!" Yuffie was nearly yelling now, angry tears rolling down her cheeks despite her best attempts to hold them back. "You never listen to what I have to say, but right now you're gonna listen, and listen good!!" She pointed over to where the Avalanche members were standing nearby, most of which seemed highly uncomfortable with the events unfolding before them. "These guys aren't the criminals, Shinra are!! They took away Wutai's pride for Leviathan's sake!! Why in the world do you persist on playing by their rules?? We should be standing up against that corrupt company like Cloud and Avalanche are trying to do. We should be fighting them with all we've got, not cowarding from them like you're forcing us to do!!"

"THAT IS ENOUGH!!" Godo all but roared, grabbing his daughter's wrist tightly enough for her to drop the back she was holding. Materia spilled all over the ground in between Yuffie and Godo. The older watched them with astonishement as they rolled to a stop. "Materia are strictly forbidden in Wutai..."

"I know... That's why I left, remember? I told you I would bring back all the materia I could get my hands on!" answered Yuffie defiantly. "And you know what? I'll keep getting more until I have enough to protect Wutai! I won't be a coward like _you_!!"

_*SLAP*_

A collective gasp from Avalanche was the only thing heard in the following moments after Godo's palm collided withYuffie's cheek. The young girl held her free hand to the already reddening mark left on her cheek, a look of astonishement on her face. Godo seemed just as shaken by his action, staring at his hand with which he had struck his daughter as if it were not his own.

Yuffie was the first to find her voice. "You're a poor excuse for a father..." Hardly more than a whisper, but the accusation stung Godo just as surely as a slap would have. It left him reeling for a moment, his mouth hanging open in disbelief until he seemed to remember they had an audience and recollected himself.

"We will discuss this when we get home," his tone left no room for discussion as he turned to leave, seemingly intent on dragging Yuffie along whether she was willing or not. Several protests were heard issued from the ragtag group of fighters they were about to leave behind, but the Wutainese leader payed no attention to any of them. The sound of a gun cocking directly behind him, however, was more then he could ignore, and so he was forced to freeze in his tracks.

"The girl stays here..." came Vincent Valentine's cold voice as he held his gun leveled with Godo's head, his red eyes glowing with barely contained fury. The two bodyguards on either side of their leader seemed at a lost as to what they should do, wanting to protect their leader but not daring to provoke the gunslinger as he held Wutai's most important man hostage. They were saved from their own indecision a moment later when Godo dismissed the both of them, before turning to face his would-be attacker, all the while still holding onto his daughter.

"Yuffie is my daughter, and Wutai's rightful heir!" Godo looked Vincent right in the eye as he spoke, attempting to appear more confident then the tremor in his voice let on. "I cannot allow her to go running about the world with a bunch of anarchists who fill her mind with nonsense!! She belongs..." He was cut off by Vincent.

"Where she belongs is up to her, and her alone. You may be her father, but you have forfeit any right to tell her what to do when you decided to lay your hand on her..." Vincent's voice held a demonic quality to it, his anger barely held back as he glared hatefully at the shorter man. He took a step towards Godo and Yuffie, his claw extended to his side as if ready to strike. Fear took over the two bodyguards and they fled, nearly tripping over one another in their haste and leaving their leader alone to face this terrifying opponent on his own. "Release the girl, _NOW_..."

Godo did just that, seemingly resigned that there was nothing else he could do. No sooner had he let go of her wrist, the young ninja ran forward and clung to Vincent's shirt immediately, hiding her face in his chest while his clawed hand encircled her back reassuringly. The gunslinger did not look down at the girl however, his gaze, much like his gun, still held unwaveringly at the pitiful man standing a few paces in front of him.

Shamed, Godo looked away, unable to hold Vincent's accusing eyes. "So this is how it's going to be?" His only answer were the muffled hickups and sobs coming from the girl in the gunslinger's arms. "Very well then. As it seems I have no daughter, it would appear I have no further business with you gentlemen. I bid you all a farewell!" Godo bowed dismissively to the group, and without so much as a look back, he turned and left, walking briskly back towards the town centre. Only when he had disappeared from side behind a building did Vincent reholster his gun.

"Yuffie!!" Aeris called out the her young friend as she ran over to her and Vincent. The remainder of the group quickly encircled the three as Aeris inquired about the ninja's well being. "Yuffie, it's all right, you're safe now," said the older girl as she gently tried to pry Yuffie away from Vincent. "Let me see, please..."

Yuffie turned her tear stained face towards Aeris after a moment, but refused to let go of her protector for the time being.

The reddish outlines of a handprint marred the left side of her face. The flower girl frowned slightly at the sight. "Here, let me make it better," she said, holding out her hand and gently cupping the youth's burning cheek. Her healing touch soothed away the sting and brought the skin back to its usual creamy color. "There you go," Aeris smiled encouragingly as she wipped away the lingering tears from her friend's cheeks. "How are you feeling, Yuffie?"

Yuffie sniffed a few more times, seemingly trying hard to regain control over her emotions. "I'm ok Aeris, thanks." She smiled weakly at the older girl, but it did not last. She didn't have the strengh or courage to look at any of them for the moment and so she opted to look away, frowning down at her hands still clinging to the dark fabrics of Vincent's shirt. "I didn't mean to cause you guys anymore trouble. I'm sorry." It was heartbraking to hear the girl apologize for something she had no reason to.

Tifa, who along with Cait Sith had been picking up the materia Yuffie had dropped earlier, stopped for a moment and looked over to her young friend. "Yuffie, you have nothing to apologize for." The girl turned as Tifa spoke. "If anything, we're the ones who should be sorry right now..."

"Oh, the materia! I almost forgot!" Yuffie extracted herself from Vincent's hold the moment she said this and walked over to Tifa and Cait Sith. "This is all the materia I had stashed in Wutai before meeting you guys." She explained as she helped her two former comrades pick up what was left. "I wanted to give this to you guy... You know, as a way to make amends for what I did." She looked briefly towards Vincent as if to gage his reaction and see if he approved or not of the way she chose to follow his earlier advice, but he was unreadable at the moment.

She turned back towards Tifa just as the martial artist was tying the bag holding the materia close. Tifa attempted to hand the bag over to Yuffie, but the young girl refused to take it. "It belongs to you guys now," said the ninja, smiling courageously to all her friends as she said this. "Even if you don't want me around anymore, I still want you to have them. It would make me really happy to know that I was able to help you guys in some way..." Her smile faultered as she buried her hand in her pockets. "I... I guess I should probably go now." She looked down at her feet. "No use in causing you anymore trouble..." And with that, she turned to leave.

"Cloud!" said Tifa urgently, rushing over to him with a pleading look in her eyes, her hands still clutching the bag of materia.

"I know," he said simply as he took the bag from her. "Yuffie!" He called out to the girl and watched as she stopped and turned, hope and despair fighting for dominance in the girl's stormy eyes. She seemed surprised and then hurt when he threw the bag of materia back at her. She tried her best to keep the tears from falling but couldn't. She turned to leave, interpreting the Avalanche leader's actions as one last act of rejection.

"Where do you think you're going with that?" asked the blond swordsman before she had a chance to take a step. She looked back again, confused.

"But I thought you didn't want them..." She held up the bag in question.

Cloud smirked. "I never said I didn't want them." He ran a gloved hand in his spiked hair before continuing. "I just think it's best if you're the one carrying them. Now come on, we need to get going."

"I don't get it. Do you mean..." She watched as a smile grew on everyone's faces. Confusion gave way to astonishment as understanding settled over the young ninja, and she couldn't help but smile as well. "Oh my Gawd this means I can come right?" She was practically jumping with excitement. "I get to stay with you guys??"

Tifa couldn't help but laugh happily at seeing the girl back to her energetic self. "Of course you're coming with us Yuffie!"

Yuffie squealed excitedly as she ran over to Cloud and hugged the older man tightly, all the while repeating "_Thank you, thank you, thank you_!!!" over and over.

Cloud broke into a smile as he hugged the girl back, knowing he had done the right thing. He knew, just as they all knew. They would not, _could_ _not_, abandon the girl. Avalanche did not leave their own behind, and Yuffie was one of them, for better or worse. This is where she belonged.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

_**Author's note:** First off I'd like to thank everyone who haven't given up on this story yet and for the wonderful reviews you have all sent. Keep them coming, they are highly appreciated. :)_

_Thank you to the following people for reviewing since the last time I updated this story: _Arithine_, _Pieling_, _sona_, _Kikino_, _Thunderstorm101_, _Crescent-Moon-Love_, _pride1289_, _Lady Icicle_, _Kitana_ and _Strych9_. Much love to you guys!! 33_

_Now on to the real issue at hand... To say that this chapter was well overdue would be an understatement. While I had promised to post this over a year ago, circumstances at the time forced me to place this story on the backburner. While this does not forgive having neglected this story for so long, it came to be so low on my list of priorities that I simply could not force myself to work on it. Now that I finally have a routine going on which allows me to have some time for myself, I find myself itching to write again and decided it was time for me to continue this story where I had left off. And although I'm not about to make any promises on the consistency of my updates, I promise I won't leave you waiting for ever like I did last time... So so sorry about that..._

_Next chapter is close at hand. Vincent and the gang are gonna be back on track looking for Sephiroth, and more specifically the Black Materia. _

_One last thing. Some of you have asked what parring, if any, was to be expected in this story. While I don't foresee any romance in the near future, there are already hints of a possible Yuffentine going on. I still don't know how this will develop, what with the many issues Vincent needs to overcome before he can even think of moving on, but seeing as how Yuffie can be very persistent when she puts her heart to it, it wouldn't be too much of a surprise if they eventually ended up together. Feedback would be highly appreciated on this, as this may help me decide if I should let this turn into a Yuffentine or not. ;)_

_Ciao for now!! =_D


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII. Final Fantasy 7, the storyline and its characters belong solely to Square-Enix. **

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

**Chapter 11 **

Darkness had finally settled over the Wutainese continent after what felt like an endless day of trials and troubles. There was no moon hanging in the star studded sky tonight, and despite the fact that it was a cloudless night, the starlight shining from the heavens down onto the sleeping world below was barely enough to discern the surf as it rolled in a continuous succession of waves along the mostly deserted stretch of beach. Further away from the reach of the ocean, a single fire shone brightly, creating a fragile oasis of light and warmth against the suffocating darkness and revealing a group of wary travelers gathered loosely around a makeshift camp.

Cloud was sitting on a washed up log with Aeris leaning against his right arm, lost in thought as he stared at the fire in front of him. Tifa was on his other side, her upper body propped up against the log as she rested on the cool sand. Both women were fighting to keep their eyes open. Sleep had long since won over Barret and Red, the two of them could be heard snoring in one of the nearby tents. On the opposite side of the fire, Cid was lying on the sand with his head pillowed against a backpack, peacefully smoking a cigarette as he stargazed. Cait Sith's mog was next to the pilot, the small mechanical cat having abandonned his usual perch in favor of lying accross Yuffie's legs as she sat indian style. The girl in question was currently craning her neck towards the shoreline, straining her eyes as she tried to make out the only person absent from the cirle of light, wondering briefly as to why the cloaked gunslinger would not join them.

Vincent was perched atop the Tiny Bronco as he had for the past few hours, surveying the surrounding darkness with his keen eyesight for any signs of fiends being attracted by the light of the nearby campfire. While knowing he could stand guard just as efficiently if he were lounging next to the fire with the others, the gunslinger chose to remain as far away from the ground as he could. Sand, he found, was something he did not enjoy in the slightest. The grainy substance easily found its way into any cracks or crevasses it could find, be it his boots, his hair or his gun. Not to mention his claw. Sand had entered in between the delicate joints of his claw, where try as he might he could not dislodge it completely. Even after dunking his claw in the water, he found that there was a maddeningly annoying grinding sound whenever he flexed his sharp digits. While he knew the grains of sand could not remain stuck forever, if for no other reason that they would be crushed to dust by the near-indestructible metal of his claw, Vincent had no desire to prolong the problem by adding more sand and so remained as far from reach of the irritating substance as he possibly could.

The gunslinger mused on the events of the past two days, on how their little adventure accross the western continent had somehow managed to come full circle and land them right where they had started, almost as if none of it had actually happened. They were in the exact same situation as they had been when they had first arrived on the continent, with no inkling as to where they should go next.

Vincent was brought out of his musings when he heard Cloud speak, the first to do so in nearly an hour.

"Hey Cid," he called out to the pilot, his voice cutting into the silence in spite of the swordsman's attempt to keep his voice down.

Vincent, who hadn't been paying much attention to his companions up to this point, turned in time to watch as Cid raised himself on his elbows. He, along with everyone still awake in the mismatched group, turned his attention to the leader of Avalanche.

"Somethin' bugging ya, Spike?" asked the pilot somewhat gruffly as he stubbed out his cigarette butt in the sand next to him, squinting his eyes against the glare of the campfire in an attempt to make eye contact with the blond man on the other side. They had all noticed the worry hetched on the young leader's face ever since they had arrived back at the beach, but no one had asked about it up to this point.

"I've was thinking about Rufus actually, about something he said to you on the day we met." Cloud shifted a bit as he mentioned the Shinra president, straightening up before continuing. "I remember he told you he had come to commandeer the Tiny Bronco from you in order to go after Sephiroth, but I can't recall if he mentioned where he would be going..." Cloud's voice trailed off as he once again stared off into the fire, a look of concentration displayed on his features.

Cid chuckled dryly. "I gotta admit I wasn't exactly paying much attention to what that son-of-a-bitch had to say after he said he was taking my goddamn plane. Hell, let me think about it for a sec." The pilot of the aforementioned plane sat up, scratching his stubbly chin in thought. "Dunno for sure, but I think he said somethin' about an ancien temple or some crap like that."

"The 'Temple of the Ancients'," corrected Aeris. "I remember it now, Rufus mentioned they were on their way to the Temple of the Ancients just before we had to go chasing after the plane."

Cloud turned to the pink clad girl next to him, hopeful. "I don't suppose you know were this temple is, do you?"

Aeris shrugged helplessly. "Sorry," she answered simply.

Knowing none of the others were likely to know the whereabouts of the temple, Cloud did not waste time in asking anyone else. Instead he stared down at is feet, looking forlorn.

"Hey! I've heard about that place before!" Cait Sith piped up suddenly, sitting up in Yuffie's hold. The toy cat put a finger to his lips, his fuzzy face scrunched up as if deep in thought. "Or at least I think that was the name of the place... Hmmm..."

Cloud's head shot up, a hopeful look in his eyes. "Do you know where it is, Cait?"

"Well..." Cait stretched out the word as the others held their breath in anticipation for his answer. "Not exactly," he finally said, and everyone else sighed, their hopes crushed. "But I did overhear Dio talking about it once, back at the Gold Saucer," added Cait quickly before anyone had a chance to cut in. "He got some artifact from a friend of his that said it came from the Temple of the Ancients."

"So Dio knows where we can find the Temple of the Ancients," surmised Tifa, the brunette looking much more awake now that her interest was piqued.

"Well..." The robotic cat made a show of looking thoughtful as he paused once more before answering, seemingly enjoying the attention he was getting. That is until Yuffie bumped him on the head. "Oww! That hurt!" Cait whined dramatically as he held onto his head with both hands.

"Oh please! Give me a break!" Yuffie rolled her eyes at him. "We both know you didn't feel that, so quit being such a baby about it," she told the furry robot, sighing exasperatingly when he didn't immediately put a stop to his charade. She hit the annoying cat a few more times, for good measure. "Now quit stalling and tell us what you know already, you stupid toy."

"Alright, alright!" Seemingly deciding he'd had enough of being hit, Cait dropped the act and struggled out of Yuffie's grasp, running to Tifa to seek refuge from any more abuse. Once he was settled in the martial artist's motherly embrace, the furry robot stuck out his tongue at the ninja, extracting a similar response from the girl.

"That's enough you two..." Tifa scolded playfully, as she scratched Cait Sith behind the ears. She looked down at the robotic cat cuddling comfortably against her. "Now, how about you tell me what it is you know about the temple, Cait?"

"For you Tifa? Of course!" Cait gave the girl his most endearing smile, ignoring a mumbled "Oh brother..." from a sulking ninja on the other side of the fire. "So as I was saying before being _rudely_ interrupted," he stared pointedly towards Yuffie when saying this, "Dio did mention the Temple of Ancients, but I don't think he knows where it actually is. I think his friend might know where it is, though."

"You mean the guy who sold him the artifact?" prodded Cloud, his attention focussed fully on the group's smallest member.

"Yup!" answered Cait Sith cheerfully, happy to once again be the center of attention. "Great guy, I might add. Real friendly. He's a weapon seller, so he used to come around the Gold Saucer a lot to sell Dio some weapons for the Battle Arena. He lives near Gongaga, from what I've heard. Can't remember his name, though..."

"Isn't this great, Cloud?" Aeris grabbed at the swordsman's arm as she said this, excitement making her emerald green eyes sparkle as she smiled beautifully. "Now we know where we need to go! We're one step closer to catching up to Sephiroth!"

"Yeah, it's great," agreed Cloud as he turned towards the flower girl, not quite sharing his friend's enthousiasm but cracking a small smile for her sake all the same. He placed his hand over the girl's smaller ones on his arm, letting it linger there for a moment longer than necessary before releasing her hands and standing up. "We should all go and get some rest. We're going to leave bright and early tomorrow in order to find that weapon seller."

With that said, Tifa, Aeris and Yuffie got up and followed after Cloud towards the tents, stretching and yawning as they turned in for the night. Cait Sith hopped onto his mog, promply shutting down as soon as he was secure atop the white monstruosity. That only left Cid by the fire, as he was the one elected to keep first watch that night. He stood up, taking a moment to light a new cigarette before walking over to the other side of the fire in order to sit on the now abandoned log.

Cid was nearly done smoking his cigarette by the time he noticed he wasn't alone. He caught movement near the Tiny Bronco from the corner of his eye and made to grab his spear, before he recalled seeing the silent gunslinger on his plane earlier. Hardly discernable in the shadows, Vincent was right where the pilot had seen him last on the wing of the plane, only now he had shifted position so that he was sitting down with one leg propped up, his left arm resting on his bent knee. The movement had hardly been noticable, but it had been enough to give Cid a slight scare.

"Shit..." Cid swore between his teeth a bit too loudly, and then in a softer tone when he remembered that there were people sleeping nearby. "Shit Vincent..." He was clutching at his chest, trying to calm his racing heart. "I swear, you nearly gave me a heart attack. I thought you were a fiend or something..."

"There aren't any fiends in the immediate vicinity," said the gunman in a low voice. "You should try to relax." Vincent turned his head toward the jittery pilot just then, his eyes catching the light of the fire in the same way a cat's eyes might and making them glow eerily, leaving Cid with the distinct impression that a fiend might have been a less frightening alternative at the moment. He hadn't gotten the chance to get to know the cloacked man up until now, but Barret had been kind enough to warn the pilot about Vincent's peculiar situation. While he thankfully hadn't witnessed the transformation first hand, Cid had a vivid imagination that had a tendency to run wild sometimes, which at the moment wasn't doing the captain any favors.

There was an ackward moment of silence, in which time Cid felt sweat gather at his brow in spite of the cool night air. Vincent looked away after a short moment, and the chain-smoking pilot released the breath he hadn't realized he was holding. Wiping quickly at the moisture on his forehead, he steeled his nerves enough for him to find his voice again. "So Vince, care to tell me why the fuck you aren't sleeping like the others right now?" The pilot took a short drag from his cigarette before continuing. "Barret's the one taking over my shift later tonight, so there's no reason for ya to be up so late."

"It's Vincent," corrected the ex-turk as his eyes fell once more on Cid, his disturbing gaze lingering only for a split second before turning once more towards the surrounding darkness, answering the pilot's question a moment later. "I don't sleep much."

"Oh..." mumbled Cid around his cigarette. Vincent didn't elaborate any further, seemingly content to continue staring into the surrounding darkness much like he'd been doing for most of the night. Realizing he wasn't up to the task of holding up a mostly one sided conversation with the abnormally silent man, Cid stared off into the neaby fire and concentrated on smoking his cigarette, trying his best to simply ignore the shadowy figure seated upon his prized plane.

Both men stayed as they were for a few long minutes, until finally Vincent seemed to have had enough of the other man's discomfort and shifted once more. The dark haired man swung off the side of the plane in one swift movement and landed silently on the beach, but he did not head for the tents like Cid had assumed he would. The gunslinger instead stalked away from the camp site and into the surrounding darkness. Cid didn't ask where he was going, and Vincent didn't bother to tell him. The captain watched him go until the tall figure had melted into the darkness, leaving him alone with his thoughts.

Swallowing down the lump stuck in his throat, Cid brought his cigarette to his lips and inhaled deeply, trusting his lifelong addiction to help him relax just as Vincent had suggested he do earlier. He knew he would get over Vincent's oddities eventually, much as the others had. He just hoped he didn't crap his pants before then...

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

Vincent had returned to the beach a few hours prior to sunrise, and was now looking down on the campsite from where he stood on the sheer cliff towering over the coastline. The campfire had died down during the course of the night, he noticed absentmindedly. Cid had apparently turned in sometime earlier, and Barret was now the one seated next to the smoldering remains of the fire, fighting to stay awake. Vincent was in no hurry to rejoin his fellow gunman just then, and so he opted instead to enjoy the scenery for his viewpoint.

The wind had picked up during the night, creating large waves along the shore and tossing the gunslinger's hair and cape all around him. The tide was high, allowing some of the bigger waves to nearly reach the Tiny Bronco, which they had dragged halfway up the beach upon their arrival. They would have no trouble dragging it back to the water when they decided to leave later that morning. It was still dark at the moment, but daylight was slowly turning the sky a clear blue in the east, promessing a warm and sunny day ahead. The world would start to wake soon enough. A few seagulls could already be heard going about their morning activities.

The night had felt especially long to Vincent. He had roamed amlessly, exploring the peninsula on which they had landed in search of some wild game to occupy his mind. The monsters were not being very cooperative that night however, and so the gunslinger had found himself with nothing better to do than think over the pieces of the puzzle that was his life.

His mind had inevitably turned to Lucrecia, which by association had then led to thoughts of her son, Sephiroth. There was no doubt that they would meet up with the general in the near futur, which would almost certainly lead to a confrontation. While Sephiroth's ultimate goal was still mostly obscure up to this point, what little information Avalanche had been able to give Vincent about Sephiroth's actions in the recent and not so recent past left no doubt about the general's malevolent intentions.

Vincent was worried. He knew that logically Sephiroth needed to be stopped even if that meant killing the first class Soldier, but the thought of doing so repulsed him to no ends. Had this been any other man, Vincent wouldn't have thought twice of ending his life for the greater good of the Planet. But this wasn't just any man; this was Lucrecia's son, the only legacy left behind by the love of his life. Killing him would be akin to killing her, which he knew he could never bring himself to do.

He hoped that they would encounter Hojo before the confrontation with Sephiroth took place. That way he could alleviate his conscience by killing the man responsible for this whole mess, and take his leave from Avalanche. They could very well take care of Sephiroth without him there, or so he hoped.

Trying to steer his thoughts away from the worries that had plagued his mind all night, Vincent looked down again towards the brightening campsite, noticing his companions were stiring awake. Cloud and Red were the first to get up as usual, but the others were quick to follow.

Realizing they would be leaving soon, Vincent took a fearless step forward and dropped down from the cliff in a flurry of red and black, landing with ease on the sandy bank below. He rejoined his companions a moment later, lending a hand as the group hurried to pack up and leave.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

It had taken them two and a half days to reach Gongaga by ways of the Tiny Bronco, a full day longer than expected thanks to an freak encounter with a storm system that had forced them to take shelter on land for a few hours. The going had been rough to say the least, especially for Yuffie who had been sick for most of the trip. It had left her in a foul mood to say the least, which she was more than happy to share with her unfortunate companions.

The group had stopped in Gongaga to get directions to the weapon seller's home, and in order to save time they had separated into smaller groups to look for information. Since it appeared Vincent was the only one immuned to Yuffie's none-stop ranting, Cloud had deemed it wise to pair the two of them together.

"Gawd! I swear these people are as useful as a one legged chocobo!" Yuffie huffed as she stalked away from the old man she had been attempting to question. "It's like they don't even want to talk to us or something!"

"It is to be expected, given the circumstances," answered the stoic gunman patiently as he followed after the exasperating girl. The young girl stopped in her tracks and whirled on her much taller partner, intent on giving him a piece of her mind, but the words died on her lips with just one look from her intimidating partner.

"Look around us Yuffie." Vincent extended his hand out towards the somber scene around them, his red eyes never leaving hers. "We are standing in the middle of a cemetery. These people are in mourning. The last thing they need is a group of strangers bothering them with questions to which they do not have the answer."

Yuffie crossed her arms, feeling somewhat embarrassed by her outburst now. "Yeah well, I don't see why we even bothered coming here in the first place..." She said more quietly, suddenly hyper aware of the growing attention the two of them were attracting from the few mourners around them. They were looking at her mostly, as they all seemed too frightened of Vincent to stare at him upright. Not liking their suspicious glares one bit, she grabbed onto Vincent's human arm suddenly, tugging him close behind her towards the entrance to the cemetery. "Come on Vinnie, we're not gonna get anything from these people." She froze momentarily when she realized her slip, waiting for Vincent to correct her over the missuse of his name. To her surprise he acted as if she hadn't said anything out of the ordinary, which she assumed meant he either hadn't noticed or just didn't care anymore. Either way she wasn't about to ask. "Come on. Lets go look for the others instead and see if they're having more luck than us."

Yuffie didn't relinquished her companion's arm as they approached the nearby town, using the intimidating gunslinger as a very effective shield against the townspeople's stares, some showing hate or fear, others a troubling emptiness. These people were not too fond of strangers, which was quite understandable considering the tragedy that had befallen the once quaint little town the last time they had trusted outsiders, namely Shinra. So many people had lost their lives when the Shinra reactor had malfunctioned. It was no wonder that there seemed to be an almost tangible shroud of sadness and sorrow everywhere you looked.

"I swear this place is even more depressing than the last time we were here..." mumbled Yuffie mostly to herself as she looked around for the rest of Avalanche.

"Yuffie! Vincent!" Tifa called out to the duo as she, along with Cid and Red, exited a nearby house. She ran over to them, her PHS held out in view. "Cloud just called and said they've found directions to the weapon seller's home." She came to a stop in front of them, Cid and Red not far behind. "They're waiting for us on the north end of town."

The young ninja seemed relieved to hear this. "Oh good! The sooner we leave this gloom fest, the better..."

"So kid..." Cid said suddenly, giving the young girl a strangely knowing smile. "Any particular reason why you're hanging on to Mister Sunshine here's arm like he's somekind of goddamned teddybear?" he nodded his head towards Vincent as he referred to the man in question.

Yuffie gawked at the pilot for a moment, and then realizing she was still holding onto the gunslinger's arm with both hands, dropped the much abused appendage as if it had suddenly burned her. She took a step away from Vincent for good measure, trying and failing to hold back the furious blush rising on her cheeks.

Cid couldn't hold back an amused chuckle at seeing the girl so flustered, which predictably got a rise out of the teenager. "Hey! This isn't funny so quit laughing, old man!" Scolded Yuffie as she crossed her arms over her chest defensively. "And if you have to ask, I got freaked out in the cemetery, alright?" she admitted somewhat reluctantly, looking at her yellow sneakers like they were the most interesting thing in the world at the moment. "In fact this whole place is freaking me out. Can we go now, _please_?"

"So let me get this shit straight..." Cid scratched at his head in consternation, not quite ready to drop the subject yet. "You got _scared_ of a little ol' cemetery, and yet you don't think twice 'bout holding hands with a guy who looks like he could belong in a goddamn horror flick?" He looked over to the tall man next to Yuffie. "No offence there Vincent."

"None taken..." deadpanned the gunslinger, looking utterly uninterested with the discussion.

"Get your eyes checked, grandpa! We were _not_ holding hands!!" cried out the young girl as she stepped over to Cid and poked him in the chest. "And Vincent isn't scary, so there!"

Tifa cut in just as Cid was about to add something. "You've had your fun Cid, now stop teasing the girl," she said, saving her young friend from any more embarrassment at the hands of the amused pilot.

"It's time for us to go," said Red as he turned to leave, looking over his shoulder at his companion as if to make sure they would follow. "I have a feeling we've overstayed our welcome here," he added in reference to the unfriendly stares being aimed their way from the townspeople, most from the concealement of their homes, but a few bolder men had started to gather in the streets.

Without further argument, the five of them took their leave of the devastated town, heading for the rendez-vous point as quickly as they could with Red in the lead.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

They had found the weapon seller's home without too much trouble, a few miles north of Gongaga, but did not stay there for very long. As it turned out the man knew about the Temple of the Ancients, but could not help them in locating the temple as he had never been there first hand.

He was however very knowledgeable when it came to the legends surrounding the Temple of the Ancients, and was more than happy to share what he knew with the group of travellers. He told them how the ancient structure had supposedly been built a long long time ago in order to safekeep an artifact so powerful that it was said it could destroy all of Gaia – The black materia. He didn't believe in those ancients stories though; in his opinion they amounted to nothing more than old wives' tales.

Fortunately for Avalanche, he was able to get give them a lead as to how they were supposed to enter the temple once they had found it. Apparently he had sold something called the 'Keystone' to Dio a while back. In order to enter the temple, they would need to aquire the artifact from Dio, which meant they now needed to travel to the Gold Saucer. Despite an invitation to rest for the night from their hospitable host, the group set off on foot immediatly upon receiving the information they needed, leaving the Tiny Bronco in the care of the kindly weapons seller.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

Vincent did not know what he had expected when he had first heard about the Gold Saucer from the others, but it certainly wasn't _this_. Nothing could have prepared him for the assault on his senses. In all his life he had never seen a more extravagent or flamboyant place than this. There were strange colors and blinding light patterns everywhere he looked, deafening sounds and horrible smells, the mix of which was making him feel dizzy and somewhat nauseous. However the people in this place were by far the worst part. The place was overcrowded with loud tourists and bizzare mascottes who ran around exitedly from one attraction to the next, pushing and bumping into him and just basically not caring about his personal boundaries at all. He was having a hard time navigating in the sea of people as he followed after his companions, trying to limit the contact he had with the people rushing past him and keeping his claw concealed under his cloak, as close to his body as possible so as not to accidentally injure a hapless sightseer.

Vincent had always been a private person and so he had a natural dislike of crowds, but it was only after joining the Turks that he had truly started hating them. In that line of work, control over every little element was essentiel, and in fact sometimes vital. Crowds, which were chaotic and unpredictable, were a nightmare for men of his profession. You could easily loose your mark in a crowd, and worst you could become one yourself. You could never tell if the person brushing next to you was simply a business man in a hurry to get to work, or an agent from an opposing faction trying to get close enough to you to plunge a knife in your gut. While Vincent knew that there was little chance of that happening here, where most of the people were parents with young children or teenagers looking for a bit of fun, he couldn't help but feel somewhat exposed, vulnerable even.

Despite his best efforts not to give in to his old Turk habits, Vincent found himself observing the people around him a little too closely, looking for any suspicious behavior. He knew he was being overly cautious, but he could have sworn that a few of the men he saw looked a lot like Turks. They were probably just security guards, but still, Vincent couldn't shake the feeling that these men were watching them specifically. Chalking it up to a simple case of paranoia brought on by the strange surroundings and the overcrowding, Vincent chose to ignore these feelings.

Being forced into a place as crowded as the Gold Saucer was putting the gunslinger on edge to say the least, but he knew there was no way around it and so he endured as best as he could, staying as close as possible to his companions as they pushed their way towards the Battle Arena. Hopefully they would get the Keystone from Dio without too much trouble and then they could leave this god forsaken place behind.

The group quickly reached the lobby leading to the Battle Arena and made a right towards Dio's show room, where the owner of the Gold Saucer kept all his most prized possessions. The museum of sorts was apparently the least popular attraction by far and so there was no one else present when Avalanche entered the room, much to Vincent's relief. Looking around, he found that the collection consisted mostly of junk that no one in their right mind could possibly find interesting, which probably explained the noticeable absence of people here. Most of the group lingered near the entrance, glancing around the room as if unsure where to look first, but Cait Sith seemed to know exactly what he was looking for. He quickly steered his Mog over to a display case in the back of the small room, the robotic cat jumping onto the glass enclosure as soon as he was within distance to do so. "This is it, guys!! Come and see!" said Cait as he gestured excitedly for the others to come closer. The group gathered around the display, looking inside at the small round object sitting on a red velvet cushion. At first glance it looked like a materia orb, but below it was small bronze plaque with an inscription that simply stated 'Keystone'. This was what they had come looking for.

Cloud grabbed the glass box and tried to lift it off the display with Cait still on it, but it wouldn't budge an inch. "How do we get it out?" asked the blond leader as he cirled around the display, trying to find a release of some sort to open the case, but finding a keyhole instead.

"Just smash the glass and take the stupid thing," said Yuffie matter-of-factly, as if stealing it was the most logical choice. "The less time we waste in here, the more time we have to mess around the Gold Saucer and have some fun!!" She grinned at the thought of all the attractions and games she wanted to try out, and all the materia she could acquire from unsuspecting tourists.

"Unless you're in a hurry to visit Corel prison again, stealing something here is probably not a good idea, Yuffie," Tifa said before her young friend decided to do something reckless and got them all into trouble.

"Oh, right... I forgot about that icky place..." Yuffie cringed at the not so pleasant memory of their last visit to the Gold Saucer.

"Maybe we could just ask Dio to lend it to us," suggested Aeris. "I'm sure we could come to some sort of an agreement with him."

"What sort of agreement?" came a new voice from the entrance. They turned to see Dio entering the room, the buffed man wearing a pair of dark shorts and a white muscle shirt many sizes too small for his bulk. He walked over to the group, taking notice of the display they were hovering around. "Oh I see, you're interested in getting my Keystone, are you?"

"Could you lend it to us?" asked Cloud, getting straight to business.

Dio came up next to the Avalanche leader. "You're name's Cloud, right?" Cloud nodded and Dio laughed goodheartedly, giving Cloud a slap in the back as if they were the best of buddies. "Now Cloud, I can't just give something like that away, can I? You'll have to work a little for it."

"What do we have to do?" asked Cloud, ready to agree with just about anything Dio asked of them if it would get them the Keystone.

"Nothing much, I assure you," answered Dio with a smile. "We haven't had a good fight in the Battle Arena in a long time. Since the last time you came here, actually. All I want is for you to fight a few rounds in the Battle Arena for some intertainment." The bodybuilder grabbed the chain hanging from his neck and pulled it out his shirt, showing off the key dangling from it. "You do that for me kid, and I'll give you the key to open this case."

"Deal," agreed Cloud without hesitation, already making his way out of the room and towards the Battle Arena.

Dio turned to the rest of the group before they had a chance to follow after Cloud. "Come with me, I'll let you watch the fight from my VIP box. Best seats in the house." They followed after him as he made his way to a side door, leading them up a set of stairs that led to a vast room overlooking the Battle Arena through huge glass panels. There was already a fight in progress, a young dark haired man fighting off a few small monsters with a staff. They didn't seem all that strong, but they were proving to be quite a hand full for the clearly inexperienced fighter. A huge crowd was cheering from their stadium seats all around the arena, but it was unclear whether they were cheering for the fighter or for the monsters to win. Vincent suspected it didn't matter either way. These people would be happy so long as they got to see some bloodshed, no matter how fake or unfair the fight turned out to be.

"Please, make yourselves comfortable," said Dio as he gestured for them to take a seat in the sofas near the windows, which Tifa, Aeris and Cid did. The others opted to follow Dio's exemple and stood by the windows to watch the fight progress. "Your friend will be fighting just as soon as this guy finishes up." He informed them. He then pointed over to a nearby fridge, almost as an afterthought. "You can have some refreshments while you wait, if you like."

"Oh man, that guy is a terrible fighter..." commented Yuffie as she watched the unfortunate fighter trip over his own staff as he tried to take a swing at one of the monsters, hitting his head hard on the way down and effectively knocking himself out.

"_Ooooh! And he is down for the count!_" stated the disembodied voice of the announcer over the roar of the crowd.

"No kiddin'..." agreed Barret, shaking his head at the scene. It was clear the man wasn't getting back up and so staff members rushed in, ignoring the booes from the crowd as a they dragged the dazed fighter to safety and herded the monsters back towards the hidden inclosure in the back of the arena.

A few moments later, the announcer's voice returned. "_Ladies and gentlemen!! For his second time in __the Battle Arena, please welcome Clouuuud Strrrrife!!_" Tifa, Aeris and Cid stood up as soon as their leader stepped into the arena.

"Go Cloud!" yelled Tifa as she tapped her palms into the glass window. She knew he couldn't possibly hear her, but that didn't stop her or any of the others. Everyone in the room except for Vincent, Red and Dio were whooping excitedly and hollering encouragements to their friend down below.

The spectators cheered and applauded enthousiastically as Cloud stepped to the center of the arena, is Buster sword in hand. He ignored the crowd in favor of concentrating on the coming fight, eyes fixated on the back door from which the monsters would be sent.

He didn't have to wait very long as the first wave of monsters was released from their pens. He knew from fighting here the last time that the first monsters were always the easiest, and so he wasted no time in defeating them. No sooner had he cut down the last one, a second wave of monsters was set loose, these ones being a bit tuffer then their predecessor. This cycle would repeat itself until either Cloud couldn't fight anymore, or if he successfully defeated eight consecutive waves of monsters. There was no doubt in his mind or that of his companions that the latter was the only possible outcome for this fight.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

Sometime later, the group was once again gathered around the Keystone display, only this time Cloud had the key to open it. He had been victorious in all eight rounds of the Battle Arena, the first to do so in months. The crowd had been in a frenzied uproar by the time he had finished and Dio had gladly given over his key, satisfied with the intertainment Cloud had provided. Dio had not returned with them, opting to stay and watch the other fights.

The leader of Avalanche sported a few cuts and bruises from the fight and was in dire need of a shower, but none of this mattered to him at the moment. He unlocked the case using the key and lifted the glass box, finally gaining access to the Keystone. He held the orb up to eye level for a few moments, turning it this way and that to try and see if there were any identifying markings on it, or for any other clue as to what made this orb so special. Finding nothing of interest, he pocketed the Keystone and turned to the others.

"We should get going," he said to the group as he wiped a smear of blood from his forehead. "It's getting late and we have to get to the tramway before the park closes."

"Aaww man..." whined Yuffie, as she kicked her foot into the ground to show her annoyance. "We don't have time even for one itsy bitsy ride? Pretty please?..." She pleaded half-heartedly, already knowing the answer.

"Sorry Yuffie," came Cloud's predictable response. "It's gonna have to wait till next time we come here."

"I never get to have any fun..." mumbled Yuffie as she crossed her arms over her chest, but otherwise did not object to Cloud's decision.

Cloud took the lead as he always did and hurridly led the group out of the Battle Arena section and into the main part of the Gold Saucer, weaving his way through the crowd as he tried to locate the exit. Vincent, being taller than the swordman and in a hurry to get away from this place, helpfully pointed Cloud in the right direction when it became clear that they were going nowhere fast.

The group finally reached the plateform where the aerial tramway awaited to taxi people back to the ground, only to be stopped short of climbing onto the lift by an oversided chocobo mascotte.

"Choco!!" cried out the kid in the mascotte, probably out of habit. "I'm terribly sorry, but the tram is in repair at the moment. There won't be any more rides out of the Gold Saucer until morning."

"So that means we're stuck here all night?" asked Cloud, somewhat impatiently. He wasn't in the mood for delays at the moment.

"I'm truly sorry, sir, but there's nothing I can do," the kid lifted his arms up in what probably should have been a placating gesture, but it ended up looking as if he were flapping his yellow chocobo wings. "You'll just have to be patient like everyone else." With that said, the mascotte moved to another group of tourists who were making their way to the lift to give them the bad news.

"What do we do now?" asked Tifa as the group formed a loose circle.

"Well since we're stuck here anyways, we might as well go on a few rides!!" Yuffie suggested with glee, more than happy about this turn of events.

"We can't stay up all night, Yuffie," pointed out Cloud. "We're gonna have to find a place to sleep."

"Hey guys!!" piped up Cait Sith suddenly. "I know the guy who owns the Haunted Hotel. I'm sure if I go talk to him, he'll let us stay the night for free!"

"That would be great, Cait! You're the best!" praised Aeris, smiling warmly at her furry companion.

"Off I go then!" Cait gave the others a humorous little bow before running off towards the entrance to find the Haunted Hotel.

The others followed after their small companion, albeit at a much more leisurely pace since they were no longer in a hurry.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

"This place sure is spooky!" commented Yuffie as she looked around the main lobby of the Hotel. She, along with the others were waiting for Cait Sith to finish the necessary arrangements for their stay. "You know what this place reminds me of?" asked the spunky ninja to no one in particular. Not waiting for an answer, she went on talking. "This place looks a lot like the Shinra Mansion, only the ghosts here are just holograms and the monsters are made of rubber... You know, come to think about it this place isn't so spooky after all. It's too fake..." Suddenly noticing how well Vincent seemed to melt into the gothic decor, Yuffie couldn't resist but tease him a little. "I have to say Vincent, you make for a very convincing vampire over there. If you're ever looking for a job, I'm sur the people here would hire you in a heartbeat." She gave the gunslinger a huge grin, trying her best not to laugh. He of course just went on ignoring her.

Two small boys, who Yuffie hadn't noticed were listening to her until that moment, suddenly focused their attention on Vincent at the mention of the word 'vampire'. The oldest of the two boys, brothers by the looks of it, ran over to the tall man half concealed in a shadowy corner of the room. The younger one followed obediently after his playmate. Vincent took notice of the two approaching children a little too late and found himself cornered by the two, a barely concealed look of shocked horror on his face.

"That's a neat vampire costume, mister!" said the older boy as he stopped directly in front of Vincent, look up at the man with undisguised awe. "You have a cape an' everything, jus' like in the movies!"

"A vampire like the movies!" the younger one repeated as he bounced up and down, eager to emulate his brother.

Having gotten over his initial shock, he ignored his two young fans in favor of glaring death at the laughing ninja on the other side of the room. It had no effect on her what-so-ever as she kept on laughing maniacally, holding on to her ribs as her face slowly turned red. Much to his annoyance, he noticed his other companions weren't faring much better, as they seemed to share the young girl's amusement. He didn't get the chance to think much on it however as his focus was forced back to the two children when he felt one of them pull at his cloak.

"Where can my mom buy a costume like that mister?" asked the eldest, pulling at Vincent's cloak with sticky fingers to get his attention. "I wanna dress up like that for Halloween!"

"Wow that's a neat hand you've got there mister!" cried out the younger lad when the older boy pulled at the red material concealing Vincent's left arm and the shiny appendage suddenly came into view. The gunslinger just barely got his lethal claw out of reach just as the boy made to grab it.

He barely had time to sigh in relief when he felt the other boy pulling at something to his side.

"Oh cool! Can I see your gun mister?" But the boy wasn't waiting for an answer, as he was already trying to take out the gun from its holster. Vincent's blood ran cold for the few moments it took him to get the kid to let go of the weapon and bring it out of reach over his head, like his claw. Thankfully he didn't carry any other weapon, or else he would have been in a load of trouble.

"Those aren't toys..." said Vincent to the two boys jumping in front of him and crying out "Gimmegimmegimme!!" repeatedly, the pair apparently thinking this was some sort of game.

"Ok..." said the older boy as he stopped trying to grab for the gun, the other boy stopping a moment later. Vincent hoped for a moment that they had finally grown bored of him, and tried to move away from the pair, but the older one was suddenly pulling at the front of his cloak, trying to bring the high collar away from his face. "Do you have fangs, mister? Let me see, pleaaase!!"

"Pleaase!!" echoed the younger one as he started pulling on the red material as well. Vincent found himself utterly helpless to do anything but endure the children's mistreatement of his clothes. He still had both his arms otherwise occupied with keeping his weapons out of reach, he couldn't pull away from the two boys without either pushing them to the ground or ripping his cloak, and he didn't dare open his mouth to shoo them away since the boys, along with everyone else in the room, would undoubtebly see that he did in fact have fangs, and that wasn't something he wanted to advertise.

Thankfully Aeris and Tifa came to his rescue before the situation got anymore out of hand. They each took one of the children by the hand, asking them sweetly where their parents were as they pulled them away from the flustered gunslinger.

Holstering his gun once the children were out of view, he straightened his clothes as best he could, taking that time to recollect his usual composure. Once satisfied with his overall appearance, Vincent glared up at his snickering companions, daring any of them to say something. By that time, Yuffie had opted to hide behind Barret's large frame, but he could still hear the young girl's muffled giggles.

Having endured enough for one night, the tall gunslinger stepped out of the shadowy corner and headed straight for the front desk. "The key," he said simply to the terrified hotel employee behind the desk as he towered threateningly over her. She practically threw him the room key, barely taking the time to check it was the right one. Vincent caught the key midair and whirled away from the young woman, striding past his companions and heading up the stairs without a look back.

"G'night Vincent!" he heard Yuffie call out from down stairs just as he reached the top floor. He paused briefly at the top of the stairs, before finally giving an answering "Goodnight." Not checking to see if she had heard or not, he continued on to his room, closing the thick door behind him just in time to muffle Barret and Cid's hysterical laughter downstairs.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

_**Author's note:** Ok so I wasn't sure where to end this chapter, but this seemed as good a place as any considering I didn't want it to get too long. I haven't double checked this chapter, but hopefully no big mistakes slipped through. I'll post this now anyways, since you guys have been so patient with me, and check it on a later date. Next chapter is already in the works, but I can't be sure how long it will take before I can post it. _

_Thank you to the following people for reviewing on the last chapter: _Burnout Wolf; Thunderstorm 101; Cresent-Moon-Love_ and _Moo._ Love you guys!! :)_

_Also, speedo's should be outlawed... I know Dio is wearing one in the game, but I couldn't bring myself to describing him wearing that horrible excuse for a bathing suit. Bleh... Glad I got that out the way! ;)_

_Till next time guys!! _


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII. Final Fantasy 7, the storyline and its characters belong solely to Square-Enix. **

**Chapter 12 **

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

_'Knock-knock-knock-knock-knock...'_

"Come on Vincent, we both know you're not sleeping and I'm not leaving until you open this door!" Yuffie's voice was slightly muffled by the thick wooden door on which she had been banging against for the past 15 minutes or so. "I'm serious you know! I'm gonna do this all night if I have to!"

_'Knock-knock-knock...' _She rapped at the door continuously as she waited for his answer, but sighed when all she got was more silence.

"We're at the Gold Saucer, for Leviathan's sake! The bestest place in all of Gaia!!" The young girl was starting to sound more and more exasperated by her companion's lack of response. "I wanna have some fun since we're stuck here anyway, and there is no way I'm letting you get away with spending the whole night cooped up in your room!" There was a short pause. "_Pleaaase_!!" added Yuffie pleadingly, finally giving up her incessant knocking.

Vincent, who had up to this point been watching the fake thunderstorm going on outside his window, turned to face the now silent door at the opposite side of the room, where he knew Yuffie was still waiting for his response. Not that he was going to give her one. He had already told her 'no' when she had first showed up at his hotel door asking him to come with her, and he had no intentions of changing his answer. He couldn't even begin to fathom what had possessed the girl into thinking that her idea of fun would ever, in any stretch of the imagination, correspond to his own.

"Oh _come on_ Vincent!" whined Yuffie as dramatically as she could, seemingly realizing she wasn't going to get an answer. "_Fine_! Be like that! We'll see who gives in first!" And with that said she resumed her obnoxious knocking.

She continued banging against the door in a rhythmic fashion, but Vincent knew that despite her threats to do so, Yuffie could not keep this up all night. All he had to do was wait and she would eventually tire herself out and leave. He could already tell that the knocking was less enthousiastic then it had been when she had started playing this little game.

"Come on Vinnie!!" she pleaded, using a diminutive of his name which Vincent wouldn't have tolerated coming from anyone other than her. "I promise, it's gonna be loads of fun, you'll see!!"

Vincent nearly laughed at the thought. Being dragged all over the Gold Saucer by an overactive teenaged ninja was definitively not his idea of fun. "Ask Tifa to go with you," he suggested through the door, hoping the girl would finally take the hint and just _leave_.

"Tifa's being a pain because Aeris took Cloud out on a date!" huffed Yuffie as she gave up knocking once more. He heard something sliding against the door and assumed it was Yuffie sitting down with her back to the door. He could imagine she had her arms crossed at this point, as was her habit whenever she didn't get her way.

"So take one of the others instead..."

"There _is_ no one else! Barret and Cid both left to bet on some chocobo races, Cait Sith disappeared over an hour ago, and there is no way Red can fit safely in those rides!!"

"Then go by yourself," he tried, already knowing she wouldn't like that answer.

"Aarrgh!" She cried out her frustration, giving the door a final blow strong enough to shake it in its frame. "You're being mean, Vincent!" She told him accusingly. "I wanna have some fun and unless you have a genuine reason why you don't want to come, I'm taking you with me!!"

Vincent didn't answer, and after a minute or so he heard Yuffie shuffle away from the door, mumbling "Fine, be that way..." under her breath. Thinking she had finally given up, the gunman walked over to the bed and laid down on the covers, closing his eyes to better enjoy the blissful moment of silence.

His eyes snapped open soon after however when he heard a barely discernable and yet very familiar scratching sound coming from his door. Stifling a strong urge to sigh, Vincent got up and took the two steps necessary to get to the door, unlocking and opening it in one fluid movement. He was forced to side-stepping quickly as an off-balance Yuffie fell forward, lock picks still clutched tighly in her hands.

"Ow..." Yuffie moaned pathetically from her prone position on the floor, dropping her tools in favor of rubbing her elbows which had taken the brunt of her fall.

"I'm curious..." Vincent asked sharply as he towered over the girl at his feet. "What were you hoping to accomplish once you had succeeded in breaking into my room?..." Yuffie stiffened as she heard the dangerous undertone in the gunslinger's voice, suddenly aware of how close she was to the very irritated ex-turk.

She looked up at him and attempted a smile, but it quickly disappeared the moment he narrowed his eyes at her. "I hadn't really thought this all the way through..." admitted the now flustered girl as she sat on the floor, embarrassed by her actions.

"I thought as much..." said Vincent as he took a calming breath and stepped away from his impulsive companion, allowing her enough room to get up.

Yuffie picked up her lock picks and stashed them in a hidden compartment in her kaki shorts before standing up, wiping some none-existent dust from her clothes. "You probably want me to leave you alone now, don't you?" she surmised, knowing full well that she had probably pushed him to the very limit of his patience.

He didn't say it outright, but the fact that he held the door open for her was an answer in itself.

"Alright..." The young girl sounded defeated as turned to leave, hands in her pockets and feet dragging. She was barely out the door that she whirled back towards the room, Vincent's quick reflexes the only thing preventing her from receiving the closing door on the nose. "Just one ride!..." She held her hands clasped in front of her in a pleading fashion, giving him her best puppy dog eyes.

"Yuffie..."

"Just one ride, that's all!" interjected the girl quickly before he had a chance to object. "And then I swear I'll never bug you about it again!"

Vincent rubbed at his temple with his human hand, trying to soothe his growing headache. He had to hand it to the girl. She was nothing if not persistent. He sighed, knowing she had won. "One ride," he finally conceded, in hopes that afterwards he would be able to get a little peace and quiet.

"You will?!? Really?!?" She sounded surprised as if in disbelief that her tactic had actually worked, but that quickly morphed to pure excitement as she started jumping all over the place. "Oh wow that's so great! Don't worry you won't regret it!" She was smiling from ear to ear as she talked. "Well what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Vincent just barely had time to close the door behind him and lock it before Yuffie grabbed him by the arm and dragged him along.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

"Come on, just admit it already!!!" Vincent tried to ignore the triumphant look his young companion sported as the two of them walked away from a rollercoaster ride aptly named '_The Bullet'_ for its frightful speed, but he knew there was no way she would just drop the subject. That would be far too easy, and Yuffie never made anything easy for anyone, especially not him.

"I _saw_ it, Vincent Valentine! It was right there!" she said, pointing to where the lower half of his face was concealed by his high collar. "I could see your face when we were going a gazillion miles an hour down that drop, so there's no denying what I saw!"

"What did you _think_ you saw?" he asked, mildly curious as to what she did see exactly but at the same time dreading her response.

"You _smiled_!!" She cried out, a huge smile of her own plastered on her face. Ok granted, it wasn't that big of a smile, but still!"

Vincent slowed to a stop and turned to face Yuffie, one eyebrow arched questioningly. "I smiled?" he asked, puzzled as to why she was making such a big deal about something so insignificant.

"You sure did, mister!" confirmed Yuffie, thrilled. "And you never smile, not ever! I told you this would be fun!! I was right, right?"

Vincent frowned, suddenly realizing where Yuffie was going with this. "I am not going on another ride, Yuffie..."

"But why not?" asked the young girl as her smile melted away, dismayed at having her plan found out so easily.

"The deal was for one ride only," reminded the gunslinger. "I've held on to my side of our bargain, so now I'm going back to the hotel to rest."

Yuffie sighed. "Fair's fair I guess," she said somewhat chagrined. She yawned just then, stretching her arms over her head. "I guess I should probably go back too, I'm kinda beat anyway."

Satisfied that she wasn't going to argue, Vincent started weaving his way through the crowd once again, intent on escaping to his room as quickly as possible. He might have found the rollercoaster ride far more enjoyable then he had initially anticipated, to the point of smiling apparently, but everything else about the Gold Saucer was getting on his nerves and he couldn't wait to get away from this overwhelming place.

Yuffie followed after him at a jog, being forced to quicken her pace to match Vincent's much longer strides. "You think any of the others have gone back to the hotel yet?" asked the ninja in a conversational manner.

"I suppose we'll find that out when..." Vincent was not given the opportunity to finish as Cait suddenly came crashing through the crowd right in front of him, forcing the gunslinger to stop short so as not to run into the robotic cat and his Mog. Yuffie, having not anticipated the sudden stop, ran right into the taller man with a surprised yelp.

"Hey, that's Cait!" Yuffie stated the obvious as she craned her neck around Vincent to see what was going on. "Where's he going in such a hurry?" she asked as she watched their team mate disappear through a nearby exit without so much as acknowledging their presence.

Vincent, who was looking in the direction Cait Sith had came running from, unholstered his gun. "He's being pursued," he informed Yuffie, his gaze never wavering from where he could hear two distinct pairs of footsteps quickly approaching their location.

"What? By who?" inquired the young ninja as she stepped out from behind her tall companion, looking to see if she could spot the people in question. She couldn't see anyone suspicious yet, but took out her Shuriken all the same to be on the safe side.

"They're coming," warned Vincent, the gunslinger assuming a shooting stance just as Cait's pursuers

reached their location, the sight of the gun sending all of the nearby tourists running for cover. Familiar blue eyes widdened in surprise as they found themselves suddenly looking down the barrel of a gun, but the lethal weapon was gone just as quickly as Vincent removed it from sight.

"Cloud," Vincent acknowledged the man in front of him as he holstered his gun, glancing quickly behind the Avalanche leader at Aeris as she ran to catch up to them. "What's going on?" he asked, as he focused his attention once more to Cloud.

"I don't have time to explain," answered Cloud tensely, already moving past Vincent and Yuffie at full speed to resume his chase.

"Cait stole the Keystone," explained an out of breath Aeris as she paused next to her two companions. "Cloud and I have been chasing him all over the Gold Saucer..."

Yuffie scratched her head, puzzled. "Wait... Why would Cait steal that useless thing?" She turned to Vincent as she asked this, only to find that he was no longer there. "Hey Vincent, wait!" she called out, but her escort was already a good distance away, running alongside Cloud as the two of them strived to catch up to their treacherous ally.

The two men took a sharp left as they entered the passageway through which Cait had disappeared to a minute prior, their footsteps echoing loudly as they ran through the deserted corridor. Vincent caught a glimpse of Cait just as the toy cat exited through the other end of the long passage, heading for a set of stairs.

Cloud and Vincent reached the end of the tunnel a few moments later and found themselves standing on a plateform outside the Gold Saucer, just in front of a huge staircase leading up to the chocobo racing stadium. They made quick work of the stairs and rushed into the lobby, but by then their target had vanished.

"He can't have gotten far," said Cloud as he took a few cautious steps forward, looking around for any signs of the fugitive. People were going about their business as usual around the lobby, placing bets and checking out the race results on the giant screen in the middle of the room. There were hardly any places for someone to hide here, but somehow Cait had managed to do so all the same.

"We should split up and circle the room in opposite directions," suggested Vincent, noting that the large room was spherical in shape and that between the two of them, they would have a complete view of the area as they made their way around it.

Cloud nodded his agreement, coming to the same conclusion as Vincent. "You take the right," he told the gunslinger. "I'll circle around the left side and meet you at the other end. If you see anything, holler."

Vincent had made it halfway through his side of the room when he heard a gruff voice call out to him. "Hey Vincent!" greeted Barret happily, having just entered the room with Cid from a sidedoor. "Come to try your luck on the races?" he asked as he approached his fellow gunman, a easy smile painted upon his face.

Cid laughed a bit too loudly. "He'd better hope like hell that he's got better luck then you," teased the pilot as he punched Barret amicably on the shoulder.

Even from a distance Vincent could tell the two men had been drinking, if their flushed faces and the slight waver in their gaits was anything to go by.

"Have you seen Cait Sith go by?" he asked his two inebriated team mates now standing in front of him, looking past them to the door through which they had just come and noting it lead to where the chocobos races were being held.

"Nope! Haven't seen that noisy fur bag for hours," answered Cid in a somewhat slurred manner as he tried to speak around the cigarette held crookedly at the side of his mouth.

"Why do you ask?" asked Barret somewhat distractedly as he squinted his eyes to try and figure out the results of the latest race on the large screen. "_Dammit_..." he cursed under his breath as he found himself loosing once again, tearing his betting slips in frustration and letting the pieces drop to the ground a moment later.

"He stole the Keystone from Cloud and now he's on the run," informed Vincent in a no-nonsense manner, cutting right to the chase. News of the treason made quick work of sobering up Cid and Barret as they turned their full attention to the vigilant gunslinger.

"What the hell is wrong with this group..." asked Cid, perplexed. "First the kid steals all our materia, and now that stuffed toy goes and takes the Keystone for no good reason..."

"I knew it! I told Cloud that cat couldn't be trusted when we first met him, but he wouldn't listen! That robot reeks of Shinra technology..." said Barret angrily, his large hand fisted at his side as he looked around in hopes of spotting Cait. "I swear that spiky haired kid's too trusting for his own damn good..."

A sudden commotion on the other side of the room alerted all three men and they turned in time to see Cloud racing towards the front doors. "Vincent!" cried out the blond leader to get the attention of his partner as he pointed wildly towards the entrance, but the gunslinger had already spotted Cait making his escape. Vincent immediately took off running as fast he could towards the entrance, reaching it a split second after Cloud. The other two members of Avalanche were left struggling to catch up as they had no hope of matching the speed of their two fellow team mates already far in the lead.

As they rushed out the front doors Vincent and Cloud were met by the sight of a Shinra helicopter quickly aproaching Cait Sith at the base of the stairs, the wind from its blades sending dust and debri flying all around the small robotic cat as he held on tightly to its large Mog.

Vincent practically flew past Cloud as he pushed himself to go as fast as he could down the flight of stairs, but even with his extraordinary speed he would not make in in time to prevent what he knew was about to follow.

The helicopter was already hovering right over Cait by the time the gunslinger had made it halfway down the stairs, and the side door slid open to reveal a dark haired Turk with stern features, one hand outstretched towards the Avalanche traitor.

"Cait! Stop!" yelled out Cloud as he ran behind Vincent, but Cait ignored the order as he threw the Keystone to the Shinra employee's awaiting grasp. This elicited a string of expletives from both Cid and Barret, the two having made it out of the lobby in time to bear witness to the exchange.

Vincent whipped out his gun as he ran, taking aim and shooting at the helicopter in hopes of bringing it down before it had a chance to get away, but unfortunately even though every bullet hit their mark without fault, the damage they caused from that distance was not significant enough to pierce through the armor plated aircraft and so they simply bounced armlessly off of it. He heard Barret open fire as well from somewhere up the stairs, with no greater results.

Having successfully acquired what they had come searching for, the Shinra helicopter quickly took on altitude and raced through the dark sky away from the Gold Saucer, leaving their liaison behind to deal with the furious Avalanche members all on his own.

"Hi there Vincent!" greeted Cait happily as Vincent finally reached the bottom of the stairs, the robotic cat acting as if he hadn't just betrayed them all to Shinra. This infuriated the gunslinger to no end. Eyes blazing, he stalked up to the traitorous cat and snatched him up by the neck using his clawed hand, a barely concealed snarl on his lips. The tips of his pointed fingers easily cut through the thin layer of fur before digging satisfyingly into the metal skin hidden underneath. Yet despite the imminent danger he was now facing Cait just went on smiling, showing no discomfort whatsoever as he hung helplessly in Vincent's fierce grasp.

"What are ya gonna do lad, kill me?" asked the plush, clearly amused by the situation at hand. "This isn't even my real body, it's just a toy I'm controlling from my office up here in the Shinra building."

Vincent was tempted to destroy the robot all the same as he started to squeeze a little harder, but Cait was saved from that unfortunate fate by Cloud.

"Vincent, don't!" Cloud ordered sternly as he finally caught up to them, having heard what Cait had told the gunman. "We need him in one piece so we can interrogate him..." he explained as he grabbed onto the other man's claw to try and pry Cait loose. Vincent wasn't all that convinced that the infuriating robot really needed _all_ of its pieces, but he let go of his captive all the same, if only to prevent Cloud from slicing his fingers open on the razor sharp edges of his claw.

Cait dropped to the floor in between Vincent and Cloud, making no attempt what-so-ever to get away from the two. In fact he simply sat on the ground where he landed, smiling up at them knowingly. Vincent was sorely tempted to just blast the sorry creature to bits with his gun, but knowing he couldn't do so he wisely decided to move away, leaving it up to Cloud to question the traitor.

He walked over to the wall next to the corridor from which they had first entered this area, leaning his back against it. The gunslinger attempted to keep both mind and fingers occupied from any murderous intents by tending to his still smoking gun, removing the spent shells one by one with deliberate slowness and carefully replacing them with fresh immunition.

Vincent watched from the corner of his eyes as Barret and Cid finally made it to the plateform with the rest of them, the two figures moving next to Cloud to form a tight cirle around Cait, cutting him off from any possible escape route, not that the traitorous cat seemed in any hurry to go anywhere. The two ill tempered men surprisingly managed to hold their tongues, allowing their leader full control over the situation.

"Hey Aeris, look! There they are!" Vincent recognized Yuffie's voice as it echoed through the nearby corridor. Both girls came running past him not long after as they headed for the rest of the group, but Yuffie doubled back almost immediately when she realized Vincent wasn't with them and ran over to join him instead.

"What did I miss?" she asked in a hushed voice, unwilling to disturb the palpable tension anymore than necessary. However, seeing as she wouldn't get an answer from her brooding companion, she instead focused her attention back to the others just as Cloud started talking.

"Why did you give the Keystone away to the Turks?" asked Cloud in a calm voice, but try as he might he couldn't hide his agitation completely as his fingers twitched impatiently on the hilt of his broadsword, not removing the weapon from his back just yet but ready to do so at a moment's notice.

"I'm a spy working for Shinra," answered Cait without hesitation, shrugging nonchalantly as if that revelation was nothing special.

"Goddammit..." mumbled out Cid in disbelief, his grip on his spear tightening somewhat.

"A spy?!? Workin' for Shinra?!?" exclaimed Barret in disgust, glaring hateful daggers at the traitor amongst them.

"Cait, how could you do this to us? We trusted you..." Aeris sounded truthfully hurt by the news.

"It's nothing personal. I had to do it, it couldn't be helped," explained the robotic cat, shrugging once more. "Can't we just put this little incident behind us and continue on our journey like before?"

Cloud, as well as everyone else in the group, was too shocked by Cait's strange request to answer right away. "...You're kidding, right?" asked the leader of Avalanche when he finally found his voice, astonished that the robotic cat would be so bold as to ask them to just flat out ignore this blatant act of treason and keep on traveling together as if none of it had happened.

"Not at all!" answered Cait, completely serious. "I really want to keep traveling with you guys! We're not really enemies, despite the fact that I work for Shinra. I really admire how you guys keep doing what you do without being paid or praised. It... sort of makes me rethink my choices in life, ya know?"

"You've got to be kiddin' me..." Cid rubbed at the side of his face in disbelief. "Listen cat, you've got yer fuckin' wires crossed if you think we're gonna keep a goddamned spy with us..." said the pilot with as much disdain as he could muster. The others eagerly agreed with him, sharing the pilot's sentiment completely.

Cait sighed dramatically. "I was afraid you'd be like that. I knew words would probably not be good enough to convince you guys to keep me around, so that's why I devised a foolproof backup plan." The small cat seemed entirely too confident as he smiled at the group. "Listen to this –" Cait fell silent as a child's panicked voice was suddenly issued from the toy cat, a young girl from the sound of it. "_Papa! Tifa! Help me!_"

Vincent's eyes widened in astonishment at hearing a helpless child's voice, but it was Barret's reaction that truly demanded his attention.

"That's Marlene!! _Oh God, Marlene_!!" Barret yelled out in despair. Everyone else gasped in shock, unable to believe what was happening.

"_Papa? Papa please c..._" called out the young girl as soon as she heard her father's voice, but the communication was quickly cut off.

"_NO!!!!_" The dark skinned man nearly choked with panic at the sudden silence. "He's got Marlene!! That sick bastard's got my baby girl!!" Barret was so distraught at having heard his daughter's frightened voice that he fell to his knees, wide eyes wet with unshed tears as he shook his head in disbelief.

"What did you do with Marlene?" demanded Aeris angrily as she stared down at Cait, her small hands fisted tightly at her side. "She was staying with my mom when we left her. If you've hurt either one of them, I swear..."

"Don't worry lass, they're both perfectly safe." Cait smiled up at the flower girl in what would normally be considered a reassuring manner, but given the circomstances at hand it was anything but. "As long as you keep me around unrestrained, I can promise you that they're gonna be treated like welcomed guests."

"That's low, even for a Shinra spy..." commented Cloud as he moved his hand away from his sword and crossed his arms over his chest.

"All's fair in war and love..." said the small cat in a sing-song manner. "So what say you, O Great Leader?"

"Seeing as we don't have a choice, we'll do things your way, for now at least..." No one argued with his decision. He didn't like it, but he knew that as long as the man controlling Cait had Marlene and Aeris's mom held captive, they were helpless to do anything other then what their treacherous companion wanted them to do.

"Great!" said Cait happily, clapping his hands together. "Now that that's settled, I suggest you all go get some rest! I'll let you know tomorrow how to get to the Temple of the Ancients. Shinra will have gotten there first, but I guess you'll just have to deal with that once we get there." That said, Cait moved in between Cid and Aeris, jumping onto his awaiting Mog before taking off through a nearby hall completely unchallenged, leaving the group alone to brew over this new turn of events.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

The tension had been palpable ever since the group had left the Gold Saucer behind earlier that morning. They had spent half the night awake, trying to decide what they should do about Cait. In the end they had decided that the risk with Marlene was too great, and so they voted to simply continue on as normal, or at least as normal as was possible with a Shinra spy around watching their every moves. They would just have to be careful what they said around the treacherous cat from now on.

No one wanted to trust Cait Sith, but they had no choice but to do so if they were ever to find the Temple of the Ancients, since he was the only one among them who knew where to find it. Following his instructions, they had returned to the Tiny Bronco in order to navigate east. They travelled for a few hours on calm seas, eventually landing on a small deserted island covered in woodland around noon. The small cat had then led them through the thick forest for about twenty minutes, until finally the group of travellers reached their destination.

"Here we are, as promised! The Temple of the Ancients!!" Cait extended his arm towards a gigantic pyramid-like structure in a clearing on the other side of a wide gorge, a rope bridge extending over the drop to allow passage to the other side.

"Wow! It's huge!!" Yuffie was blown away by the sight of the ancient ruins in front of them. She had never seen anything quite like this before in her short life.

"Aeris, are you all right?" asked Red, concerned by the way the flower girl clutched at her head as she stared at the ruins. Everyone turned to the girl to see what was wrong.

"It's so strange..." said the eldest girl of the group, a small furrow showing in between her delicate brows as she frowned in confusion. "I sense the knowledge of the Ancients, but its not like usual. It's like they're resisting becoming one with the Planet for some reason... I think they're angry, but I don't understand what this means... It's all so confusing..."

"Do you want to wait out here, maybe?" asked Cloud, thinking that Aeris might be more at ease that way.

"No, I want to go inside," said Aeris with determination as she straightened up and stepped towards the rope bridge. "I'll be alright," she added with a smile to reassure her friends. She was the first to get accross, and she took the lead as well as they climbed up the huge staircase leading to the entrance at the top of the pyramid.

They entered inside a dark stone room at the center of which stood an altar on a small plateform, only to find they were not alone. A man, whom Vincent recognized as the one that had taken the Keystone from Cait the previews night, was sitting up against a pillar to the side of the room, a crimson stain slowly expanding across his white undershirt. The man was still alive and conscious, surprisingly enough. He watched with wary eyes as Avalanche enter the room, his right hand reaching slowly inside his dark blue coat, where Vincent knew the Turk most likely kept his gun.

"He's hurt badly!" gasped Aeris, her green eyes widening in worry as she stepped towards the fallen man. Realizing her foolish intentions, Vincent grabbed the girl's wrist gently but firmly to stop her progress, afraid that the wounded Turk might misinterpret the girl's selfless impulse as a threat and gun her down.

"It's all right Vincent, Tseng isn't going to hurt me," explained the girl as she recognized the concern in the gunslinger's eyes. "The two of us go way back." She smiled briefly in remembrance, before tugging at her wrist so she could tend to her injured acquaintance. Vincent allowed her to go this time, trusting that Aeris knew what she was doing.

Vincent and the others watched as Aeris knelt next to Tseng and reached for his wounded chest in order to heal him, but the Turk pushed her hands away. "There's no time for that..." he told the girl as she tried to reach for him once more, wheezing painfully in between each word. He was deathly pale from bloodloss, and Vincent doubted that the man would make it through, even with Aeris's help.

"Cloud," he called out weakly as he looked past Aeris to the Avalanche leader. He waited until Cloud was close enough before continuing. "We were wrong all along... He isn't looking for the Promised Land like the President thought... He's after something much more dangerous..."

"What are you talking about?" asked Cloud, unable to make sense of what the dieing man was trying to tell him.

"Sephiroth!... You need to stop him... Before he... _before_..." Tseng's eyes rolled back in his head as he finally passed out, falling forward limply onto Aeris's lap. His right hand dropped out of his coat, a small round object held loosely in between his fingers.

"Sephiroth is here?!?" asked Cloud, bewildered. He stepped forward and grabbed onto the unconscious man's shoulders, trying to shake him awake. "Tseng! You need to tell us, is Sephiroth in the Temple?!?"

"Cloud, stop it!" Aeris pushed the agitated Avalanche leader away from her patient, afraid that he might worsen his already critical condition. Placing both hands on the unconscious man's chest, the Cetra concentrated her healing powers into his wounds, closing them up so he wouldn't loose any more blood.

"That's the best I can do for now," said Aeris as she removed her hands. "But I don't think he's going to wake up anytime soon, unfortunately..." she added quickly as she looked over to Cloud, before he had a chance to ask.

"I guess we'll just have to assume that Sephiroth is here, then," said the blond swordman, somewhat displeased that the only person who could tell them for sure was in no condition to answer. "If he's here, then we have to go in and find him."

"There's just one problem, Cloud..." Tifa sounded somewhat puzzled as she approached her childhood friend. "How are we supposed to get inside the temple?"

Cloud looked around, noticing for the first time that the only door in the room was the one from which they had entered.

"Hey look, the Keystone!" exclaimed Aeris as she finally took notice of the object in Tseng's hand. She removed it gently from his hold, carefully easing her unconscious charge from her lap and laying him down to rest before getting up and walking over to the altar in the middle of the room. "I bet if we place the Keystone on the altar, it will show us the way in."

The rest of Avalanche gathered on the plateform around the flower girl as she placed the small greenish orb in an appropriately sized slot cut into the stone altar. Nothing seemed to happen at first, but before anyone had time to react they suddenly found themselves surrounded by a blinding white light.

The light lessened gradually in intensity, until finally they could make out their surroundings once more. They found that they were no longer in the small dark room in which they had been a moment earlier, but instead atop the roof of a buidling in an immense room. The well lit room was vast enough to contain what looked to be like an ancient city of sorts.

"Hum... What just happened?" asked Yuffie in a slightly frightened voice, looking at the strange scenery with wide eyes.

"Where the fuck are we?..." Barret scratched at his head in confusion. He turned to Aeris, hoping the girl would have at least some idea of what was going on.

"I can hear them so clearly now..." said Aeris distractedly as she listened to the voices of the Planet, a distant look on her face. "We're inside the Temple of the Ancients," she confirmed as she refocused her attention to her friends. "The spirits guarding the Temple are furious... I think Sephiroth is here to steal the Black Materia from this place..."

"Alright then, all we have to do is get to the Black Materia first," said Cloud resolutely. "That way Sephiroth won't have any other choice then to face us if he wants it." He started to head for a nearby set of stone stairs.

"Hate to burst your bubble, Spike, but there's a helluva problem with that plan o'yours..." Cid called out before Cloud had a chance to get too far.

"What problem?" Cloud stopped and turned to Cid, wondering what the pilot meant.

"Don't tell me you haven't noticed this whole place is built like a fuckin' maze," the pilot extended his arm out to the strangely structured city behind him. Upon closer observation one could see that in between the confusing array of strangely built buidlings, there were countless stairscases and passages laid out haphazardly all over the city, some of which seemed to lead to nowhere.

"Unless you've got a map hidden somewhere on ya, I'm guessing it could take us _days_ before we find anything in this goddamned place... Assuming Sephiroth hasn't already gotten his hands on the Black Materia, that is..."

Cloud looked at the city carefully, trying to weight his options. "We don't have the luxury of time, unfortunately..." He turned to his team mates, having come to a decision. "We'll just have to separate into three groups in order to cover more ground, and stay in contact by using the PHS."

"Who goes with who?" asked Tifa.

"Aeris will come with me, since she has the most chance of finding out where the Black Materia is, and consequently where Sephiroth is likely to be," said Cloud as he looked to the girl in question. She nodded to him enthusiastically, happy to be of use. "Cait will come with us too..." He didn't say it out loud, but everyone knew that the only reason Cloud wanted to group Cait with them was so he could keep a close eye on the traitor.

"Barret, Tifa and Red will form the second group." The three in question joined up almost immediately, ready to leave at a moment's notice. Cloud then turned to the chain-smoking pilot. "Cid, you go with Vincent and Yuffie."

Cid walked over to designated team, but he didn't seem all that excited with Cloud's decision to have them separating. "Hope you know what you're doing, kid..."

"Everyone ready?" Cloud waited until everyone had nodded in confirmation. "Alright then, let's mossy!"

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

"Another dead-end, _again_!!" Yuffie cried out in exasperation as she kicked at the stone wall blocking their way. "I'm sick of this place! We've been going around in cirles for _two hours_ already!! This _sucks!!"_

"Would you just shut up about it already?" yelled Cid irritably, unable to stand much more of the girl's none-stop whining.

"You're not the boss of me, old man!!" snapped the young ninja as she ran past him, going back on their steps so she could try and find another route to follow.

Cid was fuming mad as he turned to the ever composed gunslinger nearby. "I swear Vincent, I don't know how the hell you do it. If I were stuck with that brat all the time the way you are, I would have shot the kid by now..."

Vincent chuckled dryly from behind the concealement of his collar. "That thought might have crossed my mind a few times..." he said in a completely serious voice as he turned to follow after Yufie, and Cid couldn't decide if the gunslinger had been joking or if he actually meant what he said.

"Vincent, come see quick!!" Both men headed towards a darkened entrance at the end of yet another alley, from where they could hear Yuffie's voice echoing. They stepped through the threshold and descended down a steep winding staircase, ending up in a dark cavernous room filled with all sorts of treasure. Their kleptomanic friend was already busy going through one of the nearby chests. "Jackpot!" she cried out as she held up a shiny materia for the world to see.

An uneasy feeling washed over the gunslinger as he looked around the room. "Yuffie, put that back where it belongs," he told his young friend as she showed off her finding to them.

"Aww come on Vinnie," whined the young girl, unwilling to part with the colorful orb. "No one's gonna miss one tiny piece of materia from this place!"

Vincent was too distracted to really listen to her at this point. He didn't know what it was, but there was something very wrong with this place. "We have to leave, _now_..."

He had barely finished his sentence that a terrifying roar echoed through the darkened room, causing all three Avalanche members to freeze momentarily as they looked at each other.

"Point taken..." squeaked Yuffie as she threw the materia back into the chest before running for the exit with her two companions. Thick metal bars slid down from the top of the stone entranceway before they had a chance to reach it, blocking their only way out.

"We're trapped!!" yelled Cid in a panic as he tried to force the bars back up unsuccessfully. Yuffie joined in the effort, but it was to no avail.

"We have no choice but to fight..." noted Vincent grimly as he readied his gun, scanning the darkness of the room for any sign of their foe. The only light source down here came from the doorway at their back, which meant that it was impossible even for Vincent to see the far end of the room. He could only wait and see what would come crawling out of the darkness.

Vincent's calm demeanor seemed to have a positive effect on his two panicky team mates as they finally stopped trying to force their way out and readied their own weapons in wake of the upcoming fight.

Footsteps were heard coming closer and closer to the small group of fighters, the creature creating them heavy enough to cause the ground to vibrate with every step.

Two dull glowing balls of amber were the first thing to be revealed, mere moments before a gargantuan red dragon finally immerged from the darkness. It rushed at the trespassers without warning, roaring in rage.

"_Goddamnit!!_" the pilot swore as he jumped out of harms way, he and Yuffie going left while Vincent leapt to the right, the huge reptile narrowly missing them as it collided with the wall.

All three of them ran towards the center of the room to put some distance between them and their dangerous opponent, but they couldn't afford to go too far either as they would end up unable to see anything.

The dragon whipped around, its wild eyes focusing on its three much smaller targets. Yuffie's Shuriken flew across the room in a wide arc just then, hitting the dragon square in the chest. Unfortunately it simply bounced off the diamond hard scales harmlessly and swooped back to its awaiting owner. Seeing this, Vincent shot a few experimental rounds at the creature, trying to find a weak spot.

The bullets seemed to tick the creature off more then anything else, and it started to advance quickly towards the gunslinger, its amber eyes focused fixedly on him.

Vincent leapt up as high as he could as the creature took a swipe at him, placing him at eye level with the huge dragon. While in mid-air, the gunslinger took aim at the unmistakable weap spot, realizing that the eyes were most likely the only vulnerable part anywhere on the well protected beast. He fired point blank at the creature's face, the bullet piercing easily through its right eye.

The dragon shreeked in pain as blood sprayed out of its ruined eye, but Vincent payed no attention to it as he turned his focus on its remaining eye, taking aim. The gunslinger never saw the dragon's tail as it whiped down on him from above with lightning speed, sending him crashing to the ground with enough force to crack the stone floor. Stunned, Vincent tried to feel for his gun from his prone position only to realize that his weapon had been thrown clear across the room.

Movement from above caught his eye a little too late for him to react properly, as a clawed paw as big as Vincent himself came crashing down towards him. The gunslinger threw up his arms in a last-ditch attempt at protection just as the gigantic creature's full weight came bearing down on him. The bones in both his arms snapped almost immediatly under the incredible amount of pressure, elliciting an agonized cry from the trapped man. His cry was shortlived as his chest became compressed to the point where all the air was forced out of his lungs. White hot pain shot through Vincent as he felt his ribcage start to give way.

Vincent knew without a doubt that he would be crushed to death if he didn't somehow managed to escape in the next few seconds, but to his horror he found that he was completely helpless. He couldn't move at all, and his mind was starting to become fuzzy from lack of oxygen. He was going to die...

"_VINCENT!!!!!..._" Yuffie's shrill cry was the last thing the gunslinger heard before he was finally overcome by darkness...

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

_**Author's note:** Behold the Mighty Cliffhanger! Gaze in wonder at its terrible power and weep, puny mortals!! Mouhahahaha!!! _

_On a more serious note, this chapter was starting to get way to long for my taste, and in my opinion this was just too perfect a place to end it for me not to. I hope you all forgive me, and I promise that the next chapter will follow quickly. :) _

_A quick thanx to the following people for reviewing on the last chapter: _Kyuubi-ismy-homie _and _ChaosNathan. _Hope to see more wonderful reviews from all you guys for this chapter. Who knows, it might just inspire me to write faster. ;) _

_In any case, It's two o'clock in the morning here so I'm gonna crash now. _

_Enjoy! =D_


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII. Final Fantasy 7, the storyline and its characters belong solely to Square-Enix. **

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

**Chapter 13 **

"_VINCENT!!!!!..._" Yuffie cried out in horror as she witnessed one of her dearest friends about to be crushed to death under the weight of a ferocious dragon. Vincent's face, which she could just barely make out from under the dragon's paw, was twisted painfully in a silent scream. He made no sound, but the cry of agony from when his arms had been broken a moment earlier kept replaying itself in the traumatized girl's mind, over and over, making her reel with nausea. Quite suddenly, the gunslinger's tense features slackened as his face became eerily pale, his red eyes rolling back into his eyes as he lost consciousness.

Yuffie could swear her heart had stopped as she watched Vincent lay completely immobile under the crushing weight of the monster, unable to tell if he was simply unconscious, or worse... Before she knew it she was running forward, an angered cry which her numb mind barely registered as being her own tearing at her throat as she swung her Shuriken with all the strengh she could muster, sending it flying towards the dragon's throat.

The dragon swatted the large throwing star with its tail as if it were nothing more than an annoyance, deflecting it from its intended course so that it became impaled in the wall near the entrance, out of reach of the ninja. Yuffie kept on charging despite the loss of her weapon, intent on saving Vincent at any cost.

Yuffie was halfway to her target when she was suddenly tackled from behind by Cid, the pilot forcing her down to the ground as he restrained her in a tight bearhug. The girl let out a strangled cry as she struggled wildly in an attempt to throw the older man off her. ""_LET GO OF ME!!!"_ She was nearly hysterical as he forced her back to her feet and started dragging her away from her goal.

"Not a chance, kid..." Cid gritted his teeth, his voice strained with the effort of trying to get both he and the feisty adolescent away from any immediate danger. As much as he wanted to help their fallen comrade, he knew that rushing blindly into a fight like Yuffie had been about to do was nothing short of suicide. Not to mention that it might be all in vain, seeing as it seemed to already be too late for the gunslinger...

He had only managed to drag her back a few steps when she suddenly changed her tactic, pushing herself into him instead of fighting against his hold. The pilot hadn't expected the sudden change in momentum and found himself tipping backward. He stepped back quickly in an attempt to regain his balance before he fell on his back with Yuffie on top of him. The young ninja had expected that very reaction and leaned forward once more, putting enough space between their bodies so she could maneuver her right arm in between them. She elbowed him quickly in the solar plexus, not so hard as to cause lasting harm but enough to knock the wind out of her captor. The unexpected blow surprised Cid enough for him to loosen his grip on the girl for a split second. That was all the time the resourceful ninja needed in order to escape from his grasp.

Swearing loudly, the winded pilot took off after the girl once more, but she had enough of a lead that he knew he wouldn't be able to catch her a second time before she reached the beast threatening their friend's life. His step faltered when the beast in question suddenly took notice of their approach, its lone beastial eye focussing on Yuffie since she was the closest of the two potential prey. At first Cid thought the girl was unaware of the imminant danger, but he started swearing anew when he realized that getting the dragon's attention was _exactly_ what the girl wanted. She waved and hollered at the giant reptile, trying to get it to loose interest in its current prey by making herself out to be a more interesting target.

Clammy hands tightened around the shaft of his trusty spear as the chain-smoking pilot prepared to throw it like a javelin, aiming for the red dragon's remaining eye and praying he would hit his mark before the creature struck down another of his comrades.

Time seemed to slow down to a crawl as multiple events happened almost simultaneously. Cid let his spear fly at the same moment that the dragon whipped its tail forward towards Yuffie, who was now within striking reach. The young girl in question had taken out a lightning materia as she ran towards the beast, the small orb now glowing in between her fingers as she prepared to cast the spell forth. Before any of the attacks in motion had a chance to strike home, a sudden gust of unatural wind pulsed through the cave, sending Cid's spear off course and halting both the dragon's and Yuffie's attacks. A faint red glow became apparent for a split second from underneath the dragon's paw where Vincent was held pinned, before the appendage was suddenly ingulfed in a fiery haze of red energy.

The dragon roared in pain as it pulled its limb away from the devastatingly destructive energy, but the damage had already been done, its clawed hand now reduced to a mangled mess of charred flesh. Snarling, the dragon moved away from the threat which he had mistakenly taken for an easy prey. The red haze masking the unconscious gunslinger from view receded after a few seconds, revealing a very lucid and very pissed Galiant Beast.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

Galiant Beast rose onto its hind legs, shaking out its red mane before taking in its surroundings as it assessed the situation at hand. Its golden eyes lingered a few seconds on the two wide-eyed humans in the room as they slowly backed away from him. The purple skinned beast lifted its nose up, scenting the air. It recognized their scent immediately as being his host's pack members, which he instinctively knew were allies and therefore not likely to attack him. Seemingly satisfied that they were not a threat, the beast turned to face the only other occupant in the room, the one which had caused its host a great deal of pain.

Despite its imposing size, the red dragon was currently cowering away from the smaller predator, its crippled limb held tightly against its chest as blood sluggishly oozed from the seared stump. It held up a defensive posture as it regarded Galiant Beast with hatred.

Galiant Beast sneered at the sight, somewhat disgusted with the display of weakness coming from the wounded dragon. Eager to finish off its prey, the purple monster quickly summoned up its dark powers, small orbs of hellfire suddenly appearing in between its outstreched clawed hands. The balls quickly grew in size and intensity and Galiant sent them flying in a quick succession towards the giant red monster.

The dragon managed to move out of the way of the first few projectiles, but there were far too many to dodge them all and the giant beast roared as the orbs exploded upon impact and engulfed it in flames. It trashed wildly as it tried to put the scorching flames out, colliding with the nearby rock walls and writhing in pain on the dusty floor, causing the whole room to shake.

No sooner had the last flame been put out, Galiant Beast pounced on the dragon's back before it had a chance to recover, tearing at the now tenderized flesh with its wicked talons and fanged teeth, scoring deep gouges through flesh and muscles all the way to the bone.

Roaring in pain and indignation, the wounded dragon threw itself onto its back, trying to crush the other monster under its massive weight. Galiant was quicker though, and jumped easily out of harms way. He held the dragon's gaze as it rolled back onto its stomach, raising back shakily onto three legs. The sudden stench of sulfure was the only warning given before the dragon opened its maw to release a stream of flames at its attacker.

Galiant Beast lept backwards to put itself out of reach of the flames, landing almost directly in front of the two humans as a result. The behemoth-like creature looked back briefly at them, if only to insure that it had not been mistaken in its earlier assessment that they were not a threat to him. They had tensed up due to his close proximity to them, but otherwise they showed not intentions of attacking him while his back was to them. Satisfied, Galiant returned his attention to the fire-breathing monster who had seemingly changed its strategy and was now charging at them at a blinding speed.

The dragon had stopped spitting fire almost as soon as its opponent had been pushed back, unwilling to waste the precious resource anymore than necessary. Fire-breathing was a very effective defense mechanism among its species, but it could only be used for short periods before the chemicals needed to create the explosive exothermic reaction were depleted and the dragon had to wait for its body to produce more. Pain and desperation had made the dragon bold and somewhat reckless, and so it charged forward the moment the smaller predator turned towards the humans, hoping to take down the creature while it was distracted by the two.

Even with only three legs, the dragon was still as fast and unstoppable as a runaway freight train. Instead of attempting to dodge, Galiant Beast roared challengingly at its rapidly approaching opponent, bracing for the impending impact to come.

The impact never came however as a spear came flying from behind Galiant Beast, the human male having retrieved the weapon in question a moment earlier, directly into the dragon's remaining eye. The spear imbeded itself into the eye socket deep enough to penetrate the skull. The dragon collapsed almost immediately, its momentum sending it sliding on its side towards the small group. The two humans ran to the side in order to avoid the collision, but Galiant Beast remained where he was, leaping up at the last possible moment just as the mortally wounded dragon reached his location, landing on top of the larger monster's still twitching body. The smaller monster imbeded its talons into the dragon's tough hind so as not to fall off, until the giant creature finally came to a stop in the shadows near the center of the room.

The dragon was still alive, if only just barely. Violent spasms shook its large frame as the creature whimpered brokenly. Galiant Beast quickly put an end to the weak complaints as it ripped out the fallen creature's throat with its teeth, intent on making the kill which the human had nearly stolen from him. Blood gushed out like a fountain as the predator tore a large chunk of flesh from its prey, severing the dragon's carotid artery in the process. Galiant swallowed down the meat quickly, before eagerly lapping at the warm blood flowing freely from the gaping wound.

The blood stopped coming all too soon for the predator's taste as the dragon's heart fell still, its large body slackening as death finally released the creature from its torment.

Its hunger mostly sated, Galiant rocked back to sit on its heels, golden eyes contemplating its handiwork. He could hear the two humans as they cautiously approached his location, but he couldn't concentrate enough to really care about them. Now that the fight was over and the danger gone, he could feel his host reawakening in a far corner of his mind, struggling to regain control over their shared body. Feeling content after the exhalarating fight and copious meal, the beast willingly relinquished the control back to the human, becoming dormant once more in the dark recesses of the gunslinger's mind.

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

Vincent came to much in the same fashion he had the last time he had transformed, but this time he wasn't confused by the troubling lack of memories from the recent events, his curious absence of injuries or the fact that he was once again covered from head to toe in blood. As he sat waiting for the dizziness to subside, the gunslinger looked down at the mess of flesh and blood which had once been the dragon's neck. His mouth was still filled with thick, coppery blood, leaving him with little doubt about what his alter-ego had been doing moments before, but Vincent couldn't find it in himself to be disgusted by this, too exhausted to care at this point.

Taking notice of his two quickly approaching companions, the gunslinger swallowed down what was left of the blood in his mouth as he wipped at his face with his human hand, trying to remove some of the crimson substance in which he was covered but only managing to spread it around since his hand was just as soiled as the rest of him. He gave up on the useless exercise and shifted positions so he could slide down the side of dragon's body, too dizzy still to simply get up and jump to the ground.

The gunslinger managed to keep his knees from buckling under him as his feet finally touched the ground, although to do so he had to embed his claw in the dragon's flesh to support some of his weight.

"Vincent!!" Tired crimson eyes looked up from under dark bangs matted with gore upon hearing Yuffie, just as she and Cid came up to him. The young girl looked like she was about to crash into him, but she thankfully stopped as the gunslinger held up his human hand to ward her off.

"Oh gawd Vinny!! Are you ok?!?" The girl's voice was high-pitched with worry as she looked him over, trying to assess if he was injured and struggling against the need to crush her friend in a tight hug to reassure herself that he was truly alive and well.

"Yeah..." Vincent's answer was somewhat sluggish as he fought against the lingering dizziness weakening his body. He closed his eyes and brought up his human hand to his head, trying to will the room to stop spinning. "Just give me a minute..."

"How in hell?... There's not a damn scratch on you..." Cid sounded perplexed by this fact, wary even. He scratched at his head in confusion. "How the fuck is that possible? Anyone else would be dead after being stepped on by a twenty ton lizard..."

Vincent didn't bother to respond, seeing as he didn't even know the answer to the other man's question. He stood quietly still for about a minute or two, the time it took for the dizziness to finally subside. Dropping his hand from his head, Vincent looked up once more at his companions. Cid had walked over to the dragon's head to retrieve his spear in the meantime, but Yuffie was still directly beside him, her youthful face filled with worry as she fidgeted nervously. Seemingly deciding she had waited long enough, she stepped over to him quickly and carefully wound her arms around his body, almost as if she was afraid of hurting him.

"I was so scared, Vincent..." She hicupped as tears started to flow freely down her red cheeks. "I thought you were... _that you had_..." She never finished her sentence as she broke into hysterical sobs. He could feel her trembling like a leaf as she hid her tear stained face in his blood soaked garments, and he found himself feeling horribly guilty for having made his young friend worry so much over him. Pulling his claw free, he placed both his hands gently on the girl's back, tracing soothing cirles with the thumb of his human hand.

This was how Cid found them as he circled around the dead dragon's head once more, his trusty spear in hand. Vincent was well aware of his approach, but didn't bother to look up as he waited for the young girl in his arms to calm down. Yuffie had mostly stopped crying by this point, but she was still clinging stubbornly to the gunslinger. Cid cleared his throat loudly after a few moments in an attempt to gain their attention, having seemingly grown uncomfortable with the ackward display.

It had the desired effect as Yuffie finally stepped away from the gunslinger, wipping at her face now stained with blood as well as tears. She wrinkled her nose in disgust as she discovered the front of her shirt was now covered in blood. "Eeww, grossness..." She looked up at him, seemingly just noticing in what sorry state he was. "You're in serious need of a shower mister, you know that?... " said the girl somewhat teasingly, pinching the edge of his heavy cloak still dripping with blood and bringing it up between them to emphasise her statement.

"Not that I want to interrupt your little reunion or anything..." cut in Cid somewhat impatiently as he attempted to gain his companions' attention. "But does anyone else care about finding a way out of this goddamned place, or am I the only one?..."

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

It took a while, but the three of them eventually found another way back to the top level of the city ruins, through a pitch black passage on the other side of the large underground room. By the time they immerged from the dark passageway into the bright surface, Vincent had completely recovered from his ordeal and was back to full strengh.

He shook himself off as he exited with the others, reddish-brown flakes falling to the ground all around him as he did so. The blood in which he was covered had finally started to dried enough to flake off his skin, but unfortunately it only made his clothing and hair uncomfortably stiff and itchy. He endured the discomfort wordlessly, knowing there was nothing he could do about it at the moment.

No sooner had they made it out in the open, Cid's PHS started ringing. He picked it up quickly, bringing the phone up to his ear. "Highwind speaking." The pilot paused for a short moment as the caller spoke, his pale eyebrows knotting in confusion as he listened. "Slow the fuck down, Spike. What are you saying exactly?"

Yuffie and Vincent waited anxiously for Cid to finish his conversation with Cloud, worrying over the fact that the pilot seemed to pale more and more as he listened to the Avalanche leader on the other end of the phone. He swore under his breath as he hung up soon after, eyes locking first with Yuffie and then Vincent before speaking. "We need to get the fuck out of here right now... This place is about to collapse on itself..."

The three Avalanche members looked at each other wordlessly for a moment longer before rushing into action. Vincent immediately leapt onto the nearby rooftops, using the high vantage point to guide his two friends as they ran through the labyrinth of streets below. They reached the stairs leading up to the rooftop on which they had originally entered the temple quickly enough, only to realize they were the only ones present and there was no way out.

Yuffie called Tifa to try and figure out where they should go, and soon after they were running again, with Yuffie in the lead this time as Tifa gave her directions through the phone. They met up with Tifa, Barret and Red just as they entered a strange floorless room with multiple doorways, at the center of which was a large stone clock. It seemed that the room itself was some sort of puzzle, the clock being needed to cross from one entrance to the other. Fortunately for them, Cloud and his group had already been through here and the clock was already in the correct position to allow them quick access to the exit.

They caught up with Cloud and Aeris at the end of a long tunnel, the two of them waiting anxiously for the others to arrive. They both seemed battle weary, and if the scorch marks and sword slashes in the huge stone door behind them was any indication, Vincent assumed that Cloud's group had been caught in a violent fight against a strong opponent fairly recently.

"What's going on Cloud?" asked Yuffie as she ran over to the Avalanche leader. She looked around, noticing someone was missing. "Where's Cait?"

"Cait's not coming with us..." Cloud looked down uncomfortably as he explained the situation to the others. "Apparently the temple itself is the Black Materia, and in order to obtain it someone has to stay behind and solve the riddles..." The blond swordsman paused, seemingly having a hard time concentrating on what he was trying to say.

Aeris placed a supporting hand on the troubled leader, giving him a warm smile before she turned to the others, continuing where Cloud had left off. " Cait Sith volunteered to stay behind. He's going to sacrifice himself so we can get the Black Materia and prevent Sephiroth from summoning Meteor..."

The others still didn't have a clue as to what Meteor was exactly, since neither Cloud nor Aeris took the time to explain in details, but they understood enough to know that whatever it was, it couldn't possibly be something good if Sephiroth was after it.

"We need to leave, now." Cloud seemed to have shaken himself from whatever torpor had been afflicting him, focussing once more on the situation at hand. "As soon as we're clear of the temple, I'm going to call Cait so he can do what needs to be done..." He turned as soon as he had finished speaking, walking over to the massive stone doors to pull them open. Bright sunlight flooded into the shadowy tunnel, blinding the group momentarily as they followed after Cloud and filed out the door.

The group crossed over to the other side of the gorge in front of the temple, taking cover in the surrounding forest. Satisfied that they were far enough, Cloud stopped and made a quick call on his PHS, effectively sealing their friend-turned-spy's fate.

It took about five minutes of wait, which seemed to stretch out forever for the anxious Avalanche members, before there was a sudden pulse of power from the temple, a dark sphere of crackling energy appearing shortly after as it surrounded the entire structure. Almost as suddenly as it appeared, the sphere shrunk down considerably in size, until both it and the temple had dissappeared from sight, leaving behind a gaping crater where the temple used to be.

"Woah..." Yuffie was the first to respond to the incredible sight they had just witnessed, the others being too dumbfounded to express their wonder into words.

The young girls' voice seemed to pull the others from their state of astonishement. Cloud walked over to the rope bridge with intent, turning only briefly to the others as he prepared to cross. "I'll go get the Black Materia myself. You all wait for me here, I won't be long."

"I'm coming with you, Cloud." Aeris ran after the spiky haired leader, leaving no room for argument.

"I'm coming too," said Tifa as she ran after the two of them. The three of them crossed the bridge quickly, before disappearing down the crator on the other side.

The rest of them opted to stay behind to wait, too wary at the moment to do much more then loiter around the clearing. Cid was quietly enjoying a smoke as he leaned against a tree, his eyes closed in relaxation. Yuffie and Red sat down together at the base of another tree, watching as Barret paced restlessly near the bridge.

Vincent had had enough of the gore sticking to his person at this point. The warm sunlight was only making his cloths itch even worse, not to mention that the smell was starting to get to him. He walked over to the gorge, knowing there was a river running its course some distance down. Seeing no harm in taking a quick dive to wash off the blood as he waited for Cloud and the others to return, the gunslinger removed his gun and immunition so as not to get the rounds wet and dropped off the side of the gorge, plunging into the soothing water a short second later.

He dove under the strong current for a nearly a full minute, scrubbing at his hair and clothes vigorously to rid himself of the dragon's blood. When he surfaced once more, the situation overhead had changed dramatically. The others were currently rushing accross the bridge with their weapons drawn, hurrying towards the crater from where shouts and sounds of a struggle could be heard. Vincent grabbed onto the stone wall of the gorge and scaled the steep incline as quickly as he could, retrieving his trusty gun and immunition as soon as he made it up the side of the gorge before he took off running as fast as he could after his team mates.

He made it to the side of the crater in time to witness Tifa knocking out a crazed Cloud, the swordsman having apparently lost his mind to the point of beating poor Aeris senseless. The martial artist looked over to the group as they approached her location, a look of pure despair on her face. "Sephiroth's got the Black Materia... Cloud just gave it away without a fight..." This news was more then enough to shock the others, but it wasn't until Tifa's next fatidic words that the true hopelessness of the situation became grimly apparent.

"I think Cloud is being controlled by Sephiroth..."

_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

_**Author's note: **This chapter is a bit on the short side compared to the last few chapters, but I'm still pretty happy with how it turned out, considering I wrote the whole thing in two days. I don't usually rush this badly, but considering I was too sick last week to write and the fact that I'm going away for the weekend on a camping trip, I just didn't have the heart to leave you guys hanging after that evil cliffhanger in the last chapter. _

_**A quick thanks to the following people for your wonderful reviews on the last chapter: **_Cresent-Moon-Love, Kyuubi-ismy-homie, Burnout Wolf, ChaosNathan, Basia Orci, GirlWaterShaman _and_ Lizard1016.

_Hope you all enjoy this action packed chapter and I look forward to your feedback as always!! ;)_


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII. Final Fantasy 7, the storyline and its characters belong solely to Square-Enix.**

**Chapter 14**

"Do you think she's gonna be alright on her own, Vince?" Yuffie glanced up at the silent figure next to her as she spoke, breaking the silence for the first time since she'd joined him that evening. She had invaded the gunslinger's solitude just over an hour ago, and since then they had both been sitting at a base of a tree, near the twisted remains of a broken down reactor, watching the sunset as it bathed the normally somber town of Gongaga in a warm glow. While Vincent would have ordinarily preferred to be left alone, he understood perfectly well why the girl had come to seek his company, and so did not turn her away.

She was looking at him he noticed, waiting for his response. The gunman shifted uneasily but said nothing, having no real answer to give his young companion.

He felt perplexed as to the events of the past few days. After the incident at the Temple of the Ancients with Sephiroth and the Black materia, Cloud had fallen into a coma-like state, forcing the group to seek medical help in the nearest town available, Gongaga. He'd been tossing and raving nonsense in his sleep ever since they got him here, suffering from a fever that they could not seem to bring down. Everyone in the group was at a loss as to what to do, and after a few days of this they were all too exhausted to really function or think properly. Vincent too had eventually succumbed to fatigue, sleeping last night for the first time in over a week. When they woke up this morning, Aeris was gone.

At first they had assumed the worst, thinking she may have gotten kidnapped, or worse. Some suspected the new version of Cait Sith, who had joined them almost as soon as they had arrived in Gongada, of having something to do with her sudden disappearance. However, when no signs of foul play could be found and it was discovered that some of the supplies had gone missing as well, they were forced to admit that she had simply left of her own free will. As to why she had suddenly decided to leave, and to what destination, it seemed the Cetra girl had not felt the need to inform the rest of Avalanche.

Vincent couldn't help but feel a bit guilty and responsible for her leaving. If only he'd stayed awake, than maybe, _maybe_, he could have prevented her from taking off, convinced her to stay, or at the very least find out why she felt the need to leave so abruptly. Of course he also realized that this line of thinking was somewhat irrational. Aeris had probably been planning on going for a while now, waiting for just the right opportunity to leave undisturbed. Vincent knew full well that if it hadn't been that night, than she would have simply left the next night, or the one after that.

Yuffie sighed as if realizing she would not get an answer, letting her head drop down to rest on her upraised knees, thin yet strong arms encircling her legs. She cocked her head towards the gunslinger slightly, one gray eye visible under her dark bangs. "You don't think she decided to go after Sephiroth on her own, do you?" The young ninja's voice was uncharacteristically timid and laced with barely concealed worry as she asked the question that had been plaguing all of them since this morning, but that none had truly had the courage to voice until now.

Crimson eyes travelled down towards the short girl, troubled emotions evident in their depths. "I cannot be certain of her reasons for leaving," answered Vincent truthfully, although it was easy to tell he was considering the possibility. He looked away, towards the sun that had almost completed it's slow decent. He spoke again a moment later, just as the last rays of sunshine disappeared beyond the horizon. "Whether or not she has left for such a fool's errand remains to be determined. The only thing I am truly certain of is that as soon as Cloud is able bodied, his first objective will be to go after her, to make sure she is safe." He locked eyes with his companion once more, and while she could see he was still troubled, determination seemed to be the dominant emotion now. "We will find her, Yuffie."

"I guess you're right." Yuffie sighed again as she leaned back up against the tree, a faraway look in her eyes. "I just hope we find her before something bad happens…"

Darkness was descending upon the landscape, concealing the world around them in shadows. "We should get back to the others," said Vincent as he rose up from the damp grass, automatically extending his human hand out to Yuffie to help her find her feet. She gladly accepted his help, dusting herself off of loose grass and dirt as soon as she was up. Silently, the two started making their way back to the Inn where their group was staying at, their pace unhurried.

* * *

"You should be sleeping."

Tifa jumped up slightly from her seated position next to the bed, eyes wide as she turned to the door. "Vincent..." She whispered his name in recognition as he entered the shadowy room, one hand splayed over her heart as if to slow it down. "You frightened me." She had thought everyone else had gone to be, but evidently she was wrong.

"I apologize," said the gunslinger as he closed the door behind him. "I did not mean to startle you." He realized that he probably should have knocked before entering, but the door had been left ajar as he was making his way down the dark corridor and he had noticed Tifa was still awake despite the late hour.

He approached the lone bed, looking down at its current occupant. Cloud lay still under the thick blankets, blond hair plastered to his forehead, skin nearly as pale as Vincent's own. His face, which had been twisted with some unidentifiable pain earlier that day, now seemed only peaceful with sleep.

"How is he?" he asked after a few moments of scrutinizing his sick comrade, gaze shifting back to the martial artist as he spoke.

Tifa attempted a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "His fever's finally down," she informed him. She applied the back of her hand to Cloud's forehead, almost as if to reassure herself that the fever was indeed gone. She let her fingers glide through his damp hair, brushing it out of his face gently. The blond stirred slightly at the touch, but did not wake. "The doctor came by earlier, told us there wasn't anything physically wrong with him, that he was just in a strange state of shock. He said Cloud will eventually wake up on his own, once his mind was rested." She sighed, her smile faltering as she let her hand fall to her lap. Tired, overly bright eyes looked up at the gunslinger. "I've been waiting and waiting, but he still won't wake up…"

Vincent took note of the growing circles under Tifa's eyes, and of the wrinkled state of the clothes she'd been wearing for two days straight. He noticed that the plate of food Barret had brought in for her earlier had remained untouched on the side table, next to the old fashioned oil lamp that was illuminating the room.

"Did you sleep at all last night?" he inquired, dark eyebrows furrowing slightly in disapproval.

"Yes…"

A lie, he could tell. Wine colored eyes glanced away quickly as if to hide away the truth. "I slept a few hours…" she added quickly, and although he suspected she was still lying, he did not call attention to it.

"You should go to bed." His voice was soft, but stern, his tone clearly letting on that this was in fact a demand, not a request. Tifa looked ready to argue, but he did not give her the chance. "Making yourself sick isn't going to help anyone. Get some sleep. You need it just as much as he does right now."

Tifa slump down a bit in her chair, seemingly defeated. "You're right, I know…" She looked down at the sleeping form on the bed, evidently torn as to what she should do. She clearly needed to rest, but at the same time, did not want to leave her childhood friend alone even for a second.

As if sensing her inner turmoil, the gunslinger spoke up again. "I will keep watch over him while you rest."

She smiled up at him, a bit more warmly this time. "Thank you, Vincent. I really appreciate you doing this." She got up, stifling a yawn as she made her way across the small room. Vincent held the door for her, the two exchanging goodnights as she exited.

Closing the door once he was certain Tifa had made it back to her own room safely, Vincent walked over to the abandoned chair next to the bed, making himself as comfortable as possible for what he suspected would be an all-night vigil.

* * *

Despite his protests, Tifa had returned to the room at sunrise, claiming she was feeling rested despite the dark shadows under her eyes. Sensing she would not back down this time, he had eventually relented, leaving the martial artist alone with the still unconscious Cloud.

Left with nothing to do, Vincent decided to make his way to the dining area, where he could hear some of the others talking in hushed voices. As he entered the room, he was greeted by Cid and Barret, both men sitting at the table with a serving of breakfast in front of them. Barret had already eaten most of his, but Cid only seemed interested in his tea at the moment. After a moment of indecision, he sat down with them.

"Want some tea, Vincent?" asked the blond pilot once Vincent had settled down, gesturing offhandedly towards the nearby tea kettle. The gunslinger shook his head slightly in a 'no' gesture and Cid simply shrugged, as if this was the response he had expected all along.

The silence lingered on for a few minutes, before Cid spoke up again. "So Vincent… We've been thinking…" The pilot paused, looking up at Barret as though in search of support or approval. The other man seemed more interested in his food at the moment though, staring at it with such intent that Vincent thought he might drill holes into it. Finding no help in Barret, Cid looked back at the gunslinger, clearing his throat before continuing. "Me and Barret here were thinking 'bout going after that Sephiroth bastard. We were sorta hoping you might come along."

Vincent regarded both men carefully, trying to understand where this sudden decision had come from. "What about the others?" he asked finally.

Barret, having apparently lost interest in his food, answered him. "Cloud ain't getting any better, and I doubt Tifa'll wanna leave without him…" He shifted somewhat uncomfortably before continuing. "The rest can come if they want, I guess, but we ain't forcin' no one."

Vincent thought this over for a few moments, the other two looking at him expectedly the whole time. "When exactly were you planning on leaving?" he inquired. "Tomorrow morning," said Cid as he lit up a cigarette. "Figured the sooner we leave, the sooner we can stop that fucker before he finds the Promise Land, whatever the hell that is, and activates that Black Materia to summon Meteor." The captain took a long drag of cigarette, holding it in a few moments before releasing it. It seemed to calm him down a bit. "So, what will it be, Vincent?" asked the pilot, leaning back into his chair and looking at the gunslinger more fully. "Wanna help us kick that bastard's ass or not?"

Vincent let his gaze drift away towards the dining room's lone window, almost directly behind Cid, eyebrows furrowed as he fell into deep thought. He was now facing a dilemma; a choice he had hoped to never have to make. Up until this point, his plan had been simple. Stay with Avalanche until he could enact his revenge on Hojo, then leave. He'd understood that the group's main focus was to stop Sephiroth and Shinra, but he had never explicitly agreed that he would help them with this. With these new developments however, it seemed that Sephiroth was planning on escalating from simple spree killings to an all-out genocide. As much as Vincent detested the thought of having to kill Lucrecia's only son, he knew that at this point, he could not place his own selfish desires over the wellbeing of the entire world. He was stuck, it seemed.

"…Vincent?" Cid waved his hand in his line of sight, bringing the sharpshooter out of his reveries. Both he and Barret were looking at him he noticed, the two awaiting his answer. Finally, Vincent locked eyes with the pilot, his features set.

"If Cloud's condition hasn't improved by tonight, than I will come with you," he answered, his voice betraying none of the indecisiveness he was feeling at the moment. "I will aid you in stopping Sephiroth."

The other two seemed happy about his decision, and even voiced something to that regard, but Vincent could not bring himself to really pay attention anymore at that point. Having nothing more to add, he simply got up, suddenly in need of some fresh air and solitude. Leaving the Inn behind, he wandered away towards the town's limit and into the surrounding wilderness, his mind a flurry of confusing thoughts.

* * *

Hours later, Vincent made his way back to town, his state of mind having improved little from when he'd left earlier. The sun was still high in the sky, but it had already passed its midway point and was now going through its slow decent towards the west.

Vincent went straight for the Inn, ignoring the not so subtle stares he got from many of the locals as he crossed paths with them. As he entered the building he and the others had been staying at for the past few days, he could sense that something was off. Normally, he would have found most of the Avalanche members lounging around in the lobby or dining area during the day, but he only saw the owner as he stepped in. He could hear some sort of commotion coming from hallway leading up to the bedrooms, and so he went in that direction to investigate.

Yuffie was standing outside Cloud's room with Cid, Red XIII and Cait Sith. As Vincent approached the group, the young ninja noticed him and bounced down the corridor towards him, grinning widely. "Vinnie!" she cried out as she got near him. "Cloud's finally awake! Isn't that great?" The gunslinger nodded somewhat distractedly, barely noticing the young girl grab onto his claw in excitement as he continued towards the bedroom, the voices growing clearer as he approached.

"…time to rest a little first. You can't just take off like that after what happened." He could finally hear Tifa over the chatter of the others as he made it to the door, and he could tell she wasn't very happy. She and Barret were both inside the bedroom with Cloud, the latter currently busy with packing his scattered belongings.

"I've spent enough time in bed as it is," said the blond as he put the last of his clothes in his backpack, his voice somewhat impatient. "The longer we waste time around here, the further we are from finding Aeris." Looking around the room quickly as if to ascertain he hadn't forgotten anything else, he closed up the pack, shouldering it quickly before picking up his Buster Sword leaning against a wall. He looked over to the others waiting at the door, a commanding look on his face. "The rest of you should go and get ready. We're leaving within the hour."

Most of the Avalanche members present scattered quickly, disappearing into their respective rooms. Tifa left last, almost reluctantly. Seeing as he nothing to pack, Vincent stayed behind, leaning against the doorway with arms crossed. Cloud watched the dark man now blocking his path, a defiant look on his face.

"Are you going to tell me I should be resting to?" he asked the gunslinger, his features hardening a little as if to prepare for a confrontation.

"No," said Vincent simply, shrugging slightly as he answered.

"Then why are you standing there?" asked the blond man, his demeanor going from defensive to something close to curiosity, head cocked slightly to the side, one eyebrow raised.

"I was just wondering where it is you are planning on us to go to." Vincent knew without a doubt that Cloud intended on going after Aeris, but without some sort of heading as to where they should look, he couldn't understand why the Avalanche was in such a hurry to leave. The rest of the group had yet to find any clues as to the girl's whereabouts, so the gunslinger was curious to know if the blond truly knew what he was doing, or if he was planning on having them searching aimlessly across the continent, if not the entire planet.

"We're heading north, to the City of the Ancients." The blond swordsman said this with conviction, as if this were the only logical answer. Slightly taken aback with the other man's confidence, Vincent crossed his arms, one eyebrow going up in wonder. "Why there?" he asked.

"Because Aeris told me about it in a dream…" Cloud looked almost embarrassed, his cheeks reddening a little at the unorthodox admission.

Vincent wasn't as surprised as he probably should have been by this revelation. Considering how strongly spiritual the Cetra girl was, and how close she was to Cloud, it wasn't that much of a stretch to think she might be able to reach out to him in a dream. As Vincent considered the possibility, he saw a much darker expression replace the earlier embarrassment on the swordsman's features, as he continued speaking. "She also told me she was planning on confronting Sephiroth on her own…"

The gunslinger nodded gravely in understanding. He and most of the others had already suspected their selfless friend had left for that very reason; hearing it from Cloud simply confirmed their worst fears.

Having a better understanding now of why Cloud seemed in such a rush to hit the road again, Vincent uncrossed his arms and pushed away from the doorframe. "So long as she has friends like you to care for her, she'll never have to face anything on her own." He turned to leave, looking back at the Avalanche leader for one last word. "We will find her, Cloud," he said with conviction. "And when we do, we'll face Sephiroth as a team, and together we will defeat him." Satisfied that he had stated what he thought Cloud needed to hear, Vincent started to walk away.

"Vincent!" The gunslinger hadn't taken two steps out of the room when he heard the swordsman calling out to him, causing him to stop and look back over his shoulder. Cloud's face was completely open at that moment, and to Vincent it almost seemed as if the younger man was lost and confused, if not downright scared. Cloud hesitated a moment more before speaking. "I think there might be something wrong with me, Vincent… The other day, with the Black Materia… I tried, I really did, but I couldn't stop myself… I couldn't… I couldn't…" Cloud's voice dragged off to silence, a haunted look creeping over his features as he seemed to relive those events.

Vincent turned back more fully towards the distressed man. "Cloud..." he said the other's name somewhat harshly in order to gain his attention. It worked, as the man's eyes came back into focus a moment later. "I think… I think that He's able to control me…" Cloud looked away as if in shame.

"Sephiroth," stated Vincent for clarity as to whom Cloud was referring to, although it was hardly necessary. Cloud simply nodded in confirmation. "Do the others know?" asked the gunslinger. Again, Cloud nodded. "Tifa knows. And Barret. I'm sure they'll tell the others soon enough if they haven't already."

There was a moment of silence before Cloud continued. "I'm worried," admitted the blond leader, as he looked back to the taller man. "The next time we face him, what will happen if he takes control of me like that?"

There wasn't really anything Vincent could say or do to put the other man's worries at rest, unfortunately. Finally after a few moments, he spoke. "We will cross that bridge when we get to it, Cloud." The gunslinger felt almost inadequate for his lack of a better answer, but it was the best he could do for now. He was worried too, but until they had a better understanding of how and why Sephiroth could take over the ex-Soldier's mind, there was nothing any of them could do about it.

Vincent waited a few more moments to see if Cloud had anything more to add, but by then the younger man had fallen into deep contemplation. Turning once more, the gunslinger disappeared silently down the hall.

By the time Cloud joined up with the others outside the Inn a half hour later, Vincent could not detect even a hint of the self-doubt the young leader had displayed earlier. As far as he could tell, he was back to his confident self.

Cloud looked around as if to make sure everyone was accounted for. "Let's mosey," he stated simply as he took the lead, the others quickly following behind.

* * *

Driven.

If Vincent had to choose one word to best described Cloud's behavior in the past week and a half, it would be that one. Either that, or obsessed.

As soon as they had retrieved the Tiny Bronco after leaving Gongaga, the group had not been allowed to rest for more than a few hours each night. Cloud barely slept at all; Vincent suspected that if he had been on his own, the ex-Soldier would have simply kept on going until his body shut down from exhaustion.

It had taken them about a week of navigating across rivers and oceans before they had finally arrived at a cove on the Northern continent, and from there it had taken another day on foot to reach a small encampment at the edge of a mysterious forest. They'd quickly learned they could not enter the forest without first finding a special artifact called the Lunar Harp. Cloud had organized Avalanche into smaller teams, and with the help of the local archeologists, they went about digging and searching the site. Even with all that manpower, it took them an entire day before they finally uncovered the item.

With the Lunar Harp in hand, Cloud had dragged them through the enchanted forest, stating at some point that it was the same forest he'd seen Aeris in, in his dream.

Now almost at the end of their third day on the Northern continent, the group was advancing through rocky, monster infested terrain. Most of them were dragging their feet by now, too exhausted to even complain. Cloud was far ahead of the group, showing no signs of slowing down as he finished climbing a small hill up ahead. Vincent, who was used to playing the role of rearguard during their travels, found himself having to stop and wait for the others to catch up. Concerned with the fatigue he saw on all their faces, he thought of calling out to Cloud to let him know it might be time to stop. He never got a chance to do so however, as instead the blond leader called the group over, pointing to something on the other side of the hill up ahead.

The group hurried up the hill, curiosity winning over exhaustion. As they finally reached Cloud, they were awed by the sight in front of them.

"Amazing…" Tifa's whispered voice was the only one to break the silence, the others at a loss for words.

The sun had set about 10 minutes prior, leaving the sky aglow in a soft yellow light, a few stars already starting to appear towards the darkening east. Below, shadows had begun to creep over the expanding valley, but the group of travelers had no problems seeing the white, spiral shaped structures grouped loosely together near the road. A village, the likes of which none of them had ever seen before.

"We've made it," said Cloud after a few minutes, having managed to find his voice again. For the first time in weeks, he seemed almost hopeful. "The City of the Ancients."

* * *

___**Author's note: **First chapter in a very long time. It feels good to be writing again after so long, although I have to admit I do feel a little rusty. Hope you guys appreciate this chapter, and as always leave me a review to let me know what you think, and to give me some feedback. Before I go, I would like to thank the people that have kept on reading this story despite my prolonged absence, and have left me reviews to remind me of your continued support. You guys rock! :)_


	15. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII. Final Fantasy 7, the storyline and its characters belong solely to Square-Enix.**

**Chapter 15**

Night had fallen hours ago. A cloudless sky could be glimpsed through a few holes in the tree canopy overhead, and although no moon could be seen from the forest floor, a gentle glow from the trees themselves kept the dark of night at bay. A cool breeze was blowing through the high branches, creating a gentle rustle. Two silent figures were slowly walking along a barely visible path amidst the trees, the vivid red of the first one's cape and the other's fur clashing wildly with the clean whiteness of their surroundings. Both had a look of wonder on their faces as they took in the strange glowing flora surrounding them.

Surreal.

The word didn't seem to give the strangeness surrounding him justice, but Vincent had never been a man for words, and he couldn't think of a better way to describe this place. He could have easily been fooled into thinking this was a very vivid dream, if not for the fact that all his dreams of late could in fact be better described as nightmares.

As the two neared a particularly large tree, a golden claw was extended towards it, razor sharp tips grazing the strangely glowing bark. The surface did not give way as would be expected when cutting into wood, but instead remained whole, fine white lines following the passage of the sharp digits. A gloved hand came up a bit more hesitantly, fingers touching the surface only slightly at first, and upon finding no discomfort at the touch, started exploring the texture and feel of the bark with more confidence.

"What does it feel like?" Vincent looked down towards the source of the interruption, having almost forgotten about Red. The one-eyed feline had been unable to find sleep that night, and had simply ghosted after the gunslinger when the latter left for his nightly excursion. Red hadn't bothered to ask if he could come along, but neither had Vincent objected to the company. This was the first time either of them had spoken since leaving camp.

Vincent's red gaze strayed back to the glowing tree, gloved fingers glide easily over the slick, pristine surface as he tried to decipher what exactly it was made of. "It feels smooth, like glass," answered the gunman after a few moments. "Some type of living crystal, maybe."

"Such wonders..." said Red as he sat back on his haunches, neck craned back as he looked up at the strange tree. "Grandfather used to tell me tales about the many marvels of the world when I was a pup, but he never mentioned this place."

Letting his hand drop back into the folds of his cape, Vincent turned away from the tree, taking a good look at his four legged friend while the other was distracted. This was the first time Red had ever mentioned having a grandfather, or family of any kind for that matter.

Did he have parents?

Siblings?

Had he, like Barret, left a child behind to be on this quest? Was he even old enough to have children? He couldn't tell.

And what of the others? What did he really know about any of them?

Vincent shook his head lightly and closed his eyes, forcing this train of thought to stop. No point in tormenting his troubled mind with questions that would likely never be answered. He did not plan on staying in touch with any of them once he was done with this journey, so why bother learning about their stories?

Besides, he of all people knew all too well the consequences of getting involved in other people's lives. He'd suffered through enough pain and heartache for one lifetime, and refused to make the same mistake twice.

"Vincent?.."

The gunslinger opened his eyes, aware that he'd yet again allowed himself to get lost in thoughts. He looked down briefly at Red, before turning his attention the sky, trying to judge the passage of time with the movement of the stars, only to realize the canopy overhead was too thick to allow this. He almost looked down at his wrist out of ingrained habit, only to remember he didn't have a working watch. Frustrated with his own neglect, he made a mental note to get that remedied the next time they came across an Items shop.

"How long have we've been gone for?" he asked Red, not trusting his own judgment. He'd found that keeping track of time had become difficult for him since waking up in the Shinra manor. Probably some side effect from having slept for all those years.

"I would guess one hour, maybe," answered Red as he got up from his seated position. "Two at the most."

"We should probably head back," said Vincent, stepping away from the tree and back towards the nearby path. It had already been well past midnight when they had left the group. If they strayed any further into the forest, they would likely not make it back before dawn. Red followed after him quietly, trotting slightly to keep up with the gunslinger's long strides, the red glow of his fiery tail casting strange shadows around them as it swung rhythmically back and forth behind him.

* * *

They had been walking for maybe 30 or 40 minutes when they became aware of heavy footsteps in the distance, coming from the direction they were traveling towards. They stepped off the path out of caution, electing to stay out of sight until they knew who they were dealing with.

They didn't have to wait very long to find out, as a few minutes later, three figures appeared on the path ahead, their familiar features easily discernible thanks to the glow of the surrounding trees. Cid was running in the lead with Yuffie close on his heels, Cait Sith trailing a bit further behind.

Vincent stepped out in front of the three just as they reached their position.

"What the f…" A wide-eyed Cid skidded to a stop, grasping clumsily for his spear when he failed to immediately recognize the shadowy figure in front of him. Yuffie did not react quite as quickly and ended up colliding roughly into the blonde's back, causing both to fall in a heap of flailing limbs and explicit curses at the gunslinger's feet.

"Quite graceful," remarked Red as he came into view, the semblance of an amused smirk on his animalistic features.

The stunned pilot looked from Red to the familiar bronze plated boots just in front of his face, his features quickly morphing to a look of pure annoyance as he finally recognized who they belonged to.

"Oh! Hey Vince!" chirped Yuffie happily from the blonde's back, aggravating Cid further as the ninja seemed quite content to just stay right where she was.

"Kid, you've got to the count o' three …" warned Cid from between clenched teeth.

"What for, grumpy?" asked the young girl, smiling down mischievously at the fuming pilot. "I'm pretty cozy here."

"One…" His fist tightened its hold on the shaft of the spear at his side.

"Okay, okay! Jeez…" said Yuffie as she finally rolled off her companion and jumped to her feet next to him, realizing she had probably pushed her luck.

Cid picked himself painfully off the cold, dusty ground, glaring daggers at the infuriating girl who quickly scampered off behind the gunslinger. His glare followed after her and landed on the disquieting man, but Cid found it nearly impossible to stare into those eerie red eyes for more than a few seconds. He averted his eyes and settled on making himself look busy instead, brushing the dirt off the front of his person and straightening up his clothes.

"So Vincent," said Cid as matter-of-factly as he could manage despite his current mood. "Care to explain why you guys just up and left us behind in the middle of the goddamn night?"

Vincent narrowed his eyes at him, slightly confused. What on Gaia was this man going on about?

Red stepped in when it became clear Vincent wasn't going to answer. "Me and Vincent just went for a walk since we couldn't sleep," he explained calmly, wondering why this would cause such a fuss. "We were on our way back, actually."

"Huh guys? Aren't we missing some people?" asked Cait from his perched position atop his Mog. The plush was making a show of scanning his surroundings, a hand shielding over his eyes from non-existent sunlight.

Cid looked around quickly, and upon making a quick count of the people present, realized that Cait was indeed right. "Well, that's just fuckin' great…" He scratched the back of his head, puzzled. "Didn't Cloud and the others leave with you guys?"

"Everyone was sleeping soundly when we left," answered Vincent, realizing now that Cloud, Tifa and Barret must have gone missing. "If they left after us, we didn't see them on our way back."

The gunslinger felt a tug on his cloak and glanced back towards Yuffie. The girl had lost her easy demeanor from a few moments ago when she was teasing Cid, and now seemed worried, frightened even. "Do you think something's happened to them?" she asked in a small voice, her small fists still grasping tightly at the red fabric of his cloak as if to seek comfort.

"They're capable fighters, Yuffie," said the gunslinger in a soft voice, hoping to ease the adolescent's worries at least a little. "And as long as they're together, they can watch over each other's back."

"Besides, there is no reason to think they're even in any kind of trouble," pointed out Red. "For all we know, they decided to go for a walk like we did."

"Hah! Please!" Cid snorted in amusement, but quickly sobered up when he noticed the strange looks he was getting from the other. "Don't get me wrong, but Barret doesn't exactly strike me as the type of guy who goes out for a midnight stroll. That type of shit just ain't his style."

Vincent thought about the situation for a few seconds, trying to find a plausible reason as to why Cloud and the others would simply leave without a word of warning. He wouldn't admit this aloud, but he was starting to get an uneasy feeling in his gut.

Vincent's gaze eventually strayed to the Cid's belt, and the one piece of equipment he didn't own himself.

"What about using that device?" suggested the gunslinger as he pointed to shorter man's portable phone, unable to remember what name the noisy contraption was usually referred to as.

"My PHS?" asked the pilot at he looked down towards where Vincent was pointing. Vincent nodded. "No dice…" said Cid, frustration seeping in his voice. "We tried, but wherever they are, there ain't no goddamn signal."

Vincent looked back towards the dark path leading further into the forest, scrupulously taking in every little detail. There was very little disturbance in the hard packed dirt path, but as far as he could tell, there were only two sets of tracks that doubled back on themselves, his own and Red's.

He turned his attention back to the path ahead, where Cid and the others had emerged from. The three had kicked up quite a bit of dirt, but he thought he would probably still be able to tell if there were extra tracks.

Wherever Cloud, Barret and Tifa had gone off to, they hadn't used this path. Either they hadn't gone into the forest at all, or had encountered a secondary trail and chosen that path instead.

"Let's go find them," said Vincent as he completed his mental analysis of the situation, pulling discreetly at his cloak to try and get Yuffie to release it from her death grip. The girl 'oohed' in surprise as if she hadn't realized that she was still holding onto the fabric, and dropped her hands immediately. Vincent took off running in the direction of the campsite, trusting the others would follow.

* * *

The gunslinger ran at a steady pace through the darkness for about 10 minutes, slower than he truly wanted to go but keenly aware that everyone except for Red was struggling to keep up with him at this point. The feeling of dread he'd felt earlier had only grown stronger with every step, and was now coupled with a sense of urgency that left him on edge.

He kept his eyes trained intently on the ground ahead of him in search of clues, but for all his vigilance he almost failed to notice the faint group of new footsteps that diverged from the main path towards a hidden trail to their left.

Vincent slowed to a stop at the intersection of the two paths, waiting impatiently for the others to catch up. He crouched, inspecting the tracks more closely. Sure enough, there were three distinct set of footprints: one set was relatively small, one was about the same size as his own boots, and the last were huge, deep imprints. Tifa, Cloud and Barret respectively.

"Have you found something?" asked Red as he approached the gunslinger, taking notice of the tracks once he was next to his companion. The lion-like creature lowered his head and began to sniff delicately at the trail left behind by their missing friends. "This trail is very fresh. They can't be very far," stated Red after a few seconds, looking up from the ground just in time to see the others finally catch up to them. Yuffie was breathing hard, but Cid was in far worse shape, as he seemed about to collapse, his spear the only thing preventing him from falling to his knees.

"God… Damn…" wheezed Cid as he struggled to regain his breath. He took a few deep breaths and mumbled a barely audible '_Need to fuckin' quit smokin'_', only to take out a cigarette from the front pocket of his jacket not a moment later and lighting up. Upon witnessing this conflicting action, Yuffie arched a single eyebrow – a newly developed habit she had unconsciously picked up from Vincent – yet somehow managed to hold her tongue.

The group began walking up the new path, Red taking the lead this time as he was now able to pick up a faint scent trail. They followed the trail for no more than 5 minutes when they stumbled upon a clearing. There was a large pond that took up most of the clearing, and on the other side of the pond stood a structure that resembled a giant spiked shell that spiraled up to a point. It was similar to the building they had elected to sleep in that night, only much larger.

They wasted no time in circling around the pond, following the trail of footsteps to the entrance of the strange building.

The trail stopped as soon as they entered, but considering how the only available path once inside was a circular staircase leading down into the subbasement, that wasn't much of a problem.

They carefully made their way down the winding stairs, going deeper and deeper through the underground passage until finally they entered a huge cave. It was softly lit by some unseen light source, and upon closer inspection, one would find that the area was laid out much like a sanctum, complete with an altar surrounded by clear, untouched waters.

"Look!" cried out Yuffie excitedly as she pointed towards two familiar figures at the edge of the water.

"Hey you guys!" exclaimed Cait as he started jumping up on his Mog, waving both hands to gain their attention.

Tifa turned at the sound of the voices and waved them over distractedly, her interest going right back to what was happening in the centre of the room. Barret didn't acknowledge them at all, too engrossed with the unfolding situation to pay much attention to anything else.

The group approached their two friends quickly, looking up curiously towards the altar at the centre of the room. Soft gasps of disbelief were followed by an awed silence.

Aeris.

There she was, kneeling in deep prayer, a peaceful smile etched softly on her lips. Her features were bathed in a warm glow from overhead, making the Cetra girl appear almost angelic.

They had finally found her.

Vincent could feel himself smiling, but made no effort to conceal it. After so many days of uncertainty concerning the girl's wellbeing, he could not help but feel his heart swell with relief at the sight of his missing friend, safe and sound and reunited with them once more.

It took a moment for the gunslinger to realize that Cloud was also present, barely visible from where he stood on the far end of the altar.

The young Avalanche leader was slowly approaching the kneeling Cetra, a strangely blank expression on his face.

Cloud held out his arms, and at first Vincent thought he was about to hug the girl. When he reached instead for his sword and positioned himself for a killing blow, Vincent felt his blood turn to ice.

"CLOUD! STOP!"

Tifa's shrill cry resonated all around them as it bounced off the walls and high ceilings. Cloud seemed to stumble upon hearing the words, confusion and fear now fighting for dominance on his features. With a small cry of disbelief, he threw his sword to the ground and stepped away from the girl he'd nearly slain, who was now smiling warmly up at her would-be executioner.

Realizing something was truly wrong with this whole situation, Vincent looked around for a way up to the altar.

There. A series of platforms that started from the water's edge nearby wound around in a semi-circle until it reached the altar high above the water. That would do.

He looked back to the Altar, noticing the falling shadow all too late.

The silvery flash of a blade.

Blood.

Vincent can't move, can't even breathe properly. He watched numbly as Sephiroth withdrew Masamune in one swift move from where it had so cruelly impaled itself through the frail flower-girl's chest.

The girl's body jerked one, twice, as if she was trying to draw in air but couldn't, before her wide, watery eyes glazed over and she fell forward.

The pink ribbing she uses to tie back her hair unravels, having been torn in two by the blade. A tiny glowing materia falls from its folds, the small orb going unnoticed by all present as it bounced off the platform, landing in the water beneath at the exact same moment Aeris collapsed to on the altar, dead.

Vincent was vaguely aware of the screams and cries of the people around him, but the sounds were all but drowned out by the roaring in his ears. He felt someone brush up against him, grab at his arm, but he couldn't look away from the little scene unfolding overhead.

Cloud had fallen to his knees now, cradling the fallen girl's body tightly against his chest now as sobs racked through his trembling body.

Sephiroth was smiling down callously at the two, almost as if he found this sincere display of emotions somehow amusing.

The madman was talking now, but the words were so distant, so insignificant. Some nonsense monologue about going north… Snowfields… Becoming one with the Planet…

'_Shut up!_' Cloud's grief stricken voice cuts through the noise. The young combatant looks over his shoulder at his foe, rage twisting his features now.

Sephiroth laughs, mocking Cloud as he trembles with emotion.

Vincent can feel himself trembling also. He's aware that his vision is slowly bleeding red, but still he watches.

Sephiroth bends down suddenly, his face inches from the blonde's ear, as if to confide in him.

Vincent is vaguely aware that some of the others are rushing up the nearby platforms. Someone is still pulling at his arm with insistence, calling his name desperately. Still he can't move.

He watched Cloud as he slumps forward, noticeably shaken by Sephiroth's whispered words. A second later he releases Aeris and grabs for his Buster sword, a warrior's cry ripping from his throat.

Sephiroth jumps back, easily avoiding the clumsy swing. He smiles as he floats overhead, pulls out a strange, deformed chunk of flesh from his leather coat which he throws at his opponent, then with a few parting words, flies up and makes his escape.

A pulse of raw energy is felt from the platform, sending strong gales of wind across the room. An answering pulse of power surges from deep within the gunslinger, shaking him to the very core. The shock of power through his system finally allows him to regain his senses, and he suddenly finds himself hyperaware of his surroundings.

He looks around, breathing hard as the red fog is lifted from his vision. Yuffie is the one pulling at his arm, a terrified look twisting her features. Tifa is sitting on the ground nearby. Her face is ghostly white; she seems in shock. The others have reached the altar by now, where a strange, grotesque giant of a monster has emerged from the mutated flesh Sephiroth had left behind.

He briefly considers trying to get Tifa to her feet, to try and get her to snap out of her torpor, but decides against it. There's no time. He allows Yuffie to pull him along up the series of platforms, both fighters jumping blindly into the skirmish ahead.

The battle was exhausting, as the creature bombarded the group with wave after wave of water-based attack, essentially using the dominant element in the room against them. They could hardly get a hit on the thing, as every time they tried to advance, they would get pushed back by another punishing blow.

Range attacks and magic were completely ineffective, as the monster seemed protected by a reflect spell that sent all of their attacks against them.

Cloud was of little use at this point, as he refused to move very far from Aeris' body, protecting her from any attacks that strayed their way.

It was Red that finally made the connection that all of its attacks were dependent on magic. The creature had not once tried to launch a physical attack. It seemed nearly unable to move, in fact.

A plan quickly formed. Red, Cait Sith and Yuffie teamed up as Vincent, Barret and Cid covered them.

Using a technique Red had learned a while back, he quickly drained their opponent of all its magic reserves. Yuffie and Caith Sith busied themselves with casting counters-spells to weaken and ultimately remove all the barriers protecting the creature.

The water attacks against the group weakened more and more until finally, they stopped all together. The barriers were down a moment later in was sounded almost like breaking glass.

"Now!" signaled Vincent as he began shooting at what he assumed was the creature's face, a thrill of satisfaction rushing through him as the bullets found their mark for the first time since the beginning of this encounter.

Barret opened fire to his right, his gun-arm kept steady by his human hand. Long streams of bullets tore through the monster's chest and gut, the high powered impacts sending tiny bits of blood and gore flying everywhere.

Cid took off running from the left as Yuffie moved from cover and circled towards the creature from the right. Both gunmen paused in their attacks, but kept their guns trained on the enemy.

Cid and Yuffie jumped up in unison, synchronizing their attacks. A great Shuriken flew from the girl's hand and bit at the prone creature's fleshy side, cutting through a tentacle infested limb and removing it at the shoulder. At the same moment, Cid, using his spear like an improvised jumping pole, summersaulted over the deformed being. Using his own momentum to maximize damage as he slashed his spear at the creature's neck, he nearly succeeded in severing the creature's head from its shoulder. Yuffie's deadly throwing star swooshed past the pilot while he was still in midair, arching through the air gracefully before returning to its owner's awaiting hand as she landed to the ground. Cid landed next to the girl a moment later, spear still in hand. Smiling at each other, the two ran back side-by-side towards the others.

As soon as they were clear, bullets started flying again, this time joined up with magic attacks as well as lightning and fire appeared out of thin air and seared their target's flesh. Tifa had finally joined them at this point, and was casting magic attacks along with Red and Cait Sith.

Heavy footsteps from behind the group warned them of their leader's approach. The volley of attack ceased as Cloud walked towards the now nearly dead monster, sword in hand. The silence created by the absence of gunfire and explosions of magic seemed almost unbearable as the young man stopped in front of the creature, an unreadable expression on his face.

Without ceremony, Cloud rushed forward, brandishing his sword high as he jumped up. He swung down once, a powerful stroke that finished what Cid's spear had begun. The head hit the ground at the same time as the young warrior. By the time he had put away his massive sword, the massive body had already dissipated into nothing, the strange head disappearing a moment later.

It was over. They had won this fight, but it felt unbearably hollow. Already, the horrible truth was settling in, shrouding the group with inconsolable sorrow.

Aeris was gone.

Vincent felt strangely cold, almost detached from the moment as he watched his companions approach the fallen girl one by one, some sobbing hysterically, others in apparent shock, to give their lost friend a final farewell.

Tifa knelt next to the girl she considered a sister, stroking her cheek fondly. She smiles for a moment before breaking down in tears, rushing off towards the platforms leading back to the exit.

Barret is next, holding the girl's limp hand and gently brushing back a few strands of hair behind her ear in a fatherly gesture. He holds onto his composure, but his eyes cannot mask the sorrow eating at him. He goes off after the martial artist after a few moments, mumbling something about consoling her as he brushes tears from his eyes.

Red walks over to the girl, briefly closing his eyes and lowering his head as he says a small prayer. He looks down at the girl with fondness one last time, before he too makes his leave.

Yuffie seems broken as she steps next to her fallen friend. She does not sob, but tears roll down her cheeks unchecked. She looks up once towards the gunslinger, and he steps over to her, knowing she needed some support.

Or maybe he was the one who needed it. It didn't matter.

Yuffie kneels down and he finds himself doing the same. He looks down at Aeris, and for a fraction of a second an image of Lucrecia's face seems to overlap over the girl's feature. A stab of guilt shoots through him as his conscience whispers of failures and downfalls. He shakes his head angrily and shuts his eyes, refusing to tarnish Aeris's sacrifice with his own foolish torments.

When he opens his eyes again, Lucrecia is gone, and Yuffie is bent down over Aeris's body, hugging her tightly as tears stained the front of her pink dress. She's crying now. He reaches for her, leather clad hand gently touching her shoulder, rubbing her back lightly as sobs tore through her small body.

She somehow finds the strength to quiet her tears after a few moments. He helps her up, allowing the frail girl to hold onto him for support. They turn to leave, and Vincent finds it nearly impossible to tare his gaze away from Aeris's face. He takes one last good look to commemorate her angel's face to his memory, than follows with Yuffie towards the exit to wait outside with the others.

As they leave, something warm tickles his face and he brings up his hand to investigate. He looks on in mild surprise at the wetness now staining the tip of his fingers. He didn't know monsters could cry.

* * *

Aeris's burial was a short, emotional affair. Cloud had been the last to say his farewell to the fallen girl, and they had all been waiting for him by the pond when he finally made his exit from the building, the girl's body clutches tightly in his arms.

The ground was nearly frozen, and they were not equipped to dig. A funeral pyre was out of the question. None of them could bear the thought of seeing the loving flower girl turn to ash. In the end it the choice was simple.

Cloud walked slowly into the freezing waters of the pond, cradling Aeris in his arms as if she was sleeping. The young man looked upon the girl's face for what seemed to stretch out into eternity, until finally he slowly lowered her body into the water.

She floated for a serene moment, before sinking under the surface and disappearing into the water's dark depth.

* * *

Hours later, after what felt like an interminable night, the group was back at the building in which they had elected to stay that night, preparing to leave.

"Where do we go?" asked Tifa in a strained voice, looking towards Cloud for guidance.

"North," said the Avalanche leader with certainty. This was the first time he'd spoken since returning from the pond, and his voice cracked a little. He cleared his throat before continuing. "Sephiroth said he was going north, past the snowfields. That's where we need to go."

He paused, an uncertain look on his face. "What happened earlier, when I lost myself, before Sephiroth…" the swordsman trailed off, unable to complete that sentence.

He looked up towards the group after collecting himself. "I need you guys to come with me, to stop me from doing something like that again." He sighed. "He's able to control me, somehow. I have no choice but to go after him to stop him, but I fear that this might be what he wants, for me to follow. If you guys come along, you might be able to stop him even if I can't."

Tifa walked over to his side, grabbing his hand loosely. "Of course we're coming with you, silly." She smiled at him. "We're here for you."

The others nodded and expressed their agreement all at once. Cloud smiled hesitantly, strong emotions warring for dominance in his Mako lit eyes.

"Okay," he said finally as he walked towards the door. "Let's get going then."

He opened the door and disappeared into the new day, his loyal friends quickly filling after him.

And north they went.

* * *

_**Author's note:**_ _Whoo! Ok so really hard chapter to write here. I've been struggling forever with this one, dreading having to depict the most iconic scene in the entire game. Don't know if I did it justice or not, but I'm posting this as is before I lose what little courage I have and chicken out. I might edit it a little once I find the courage to reread it, if I find that there is any incoherent part. Let me know if something doesn't make sense. Enjoy guys!_


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

"It's so c-c-cold…"

Vincent looked over to his right, towards Yuffie's shivering figure. A blanket was wrapped around her petite form tightly, but her bare legs were still mostly exposed to the elements. He frowned; cursing inwardly for the hundredth time that day at how unprepared they were for this ungodly climate.

The temperature had been steadily dropping ever since they had started traveling north. Three days after leaving the City of the Ancients, the group had come across a high mountain range and had been forced to turn north-west, following a path that circled along the bottom of the mountains. That had been two days ago.

To make matters worse, the frozen tundra had given way to snow late last evening, as they began making their way uphill towards a passage between two mountains. By now, the white substance reached almost up to their knees, significantly slowing down their progress. The only thing keeping the exhausted and freezing group going now was the knowledge that there was a mountain resort called Icicle Inn somewhere up ahead.

Yuffie wasn't the only one poorly dressed for this hike. Tifa, Cloud and Barret were improvising with blankets and sleeping bags to try and keep warm as they walked, but it did very little to shield them from the elements. Cid was faring a little better than the others thanks to his thick aviator jacket, but not by much. He kept blowing at his hands and fingers, trying to keep them warm.

Red XIII seemed to be doing alright for now compared to the humans in the group, but Vincent worried that as they progressed further north, he too would start to suffer from the effects of exposure.

Vincent and Cait Sith were the only ones apparently immune to the bitter cold. The ex-turk's full bodysuit and cape were doing a fine job of keeping the biting cold at bay, but the gunslinger speculated that clothing alone were not enough to explain why he felt so at ease in this weather.

He knew his metabolism had changed significantly thanks to the demons Hojo had merged with his body. He no longer required sustenance in order to keep himself alive, and could go on for days without sleep. He could heal so quickly that small nicks and cuts would be gone in a matter of minutes. It wasn't that much of a stretch to think that these changes might also extent to a higher resistance when it came to extreme temperatures.

A small gasp drew the gunslinger's attention and he looked over his shoulder in time to see Tifa stumble forward. Cloud was at her side immediately, allowing the frozen and exhausted girl to lean against him for support. Tifa's lips were blue, as were Cloud's.

Vincent frowned, worried. Hypothermia might not be something he personally had to worry about, but the rest of his companions weren't so lucky. They needed to get out of this weather soon, or things would go from bad to worse.

Shrugging off the backpack he was currently carrying, Vincent dug into one of the side pockets, taking out a plasticized map before quickly shouldering the pack again. He studied the map carefully, looking around to try and find land marks that would help him estimate how much further they had to go before reaching Icicle Inn. He was relieved to find that they were much closer to reaching their destination than he had originally thought. They would be there in about an hour; maybe a bit less if they hurried.

He informed the others of this. The news seemed to lift their spirits significantly, allowing the tired and frostbitten group to push forward with what little strength they still had.

* * *

Night falls quickly on the Northern continent, and so by the time they arrived at the mountain resort, the streets were already bathed in a warm glow from the light escaping through the windows of the cottages. The group spotted an inn almost as soon as they arrived and filed in quickly, relief evident on everyone's face at finally being out of the cold.

The wooden structure was decorated like a hunter's cabin, complete with a few trophy head mounts of various creatures hanging on the wall, and a thick fur rug near a lit fireplace.

A few people were lounging around the main room, some sitting in sofas near the fireplace with hot beverages, others playing cards at a nearby table. The people present mostly ignored the newcomers, the more curious among them giving the group a cursory glance at the most.

Barret and Yuffie went straight for the fireplace, tracking snow behind them in their haste. Tifa and Red followed a moment later, taking the time to rid their feet of excess snow first. The three humans huddled on the nearest free sofa, while Red lied down on the rug to bask in the comforting warmth of the fire.

Cloud walked over to the counter on far end of the room to see about getting accommodations for the group, leaving Cid, Cait Sith and Vincent to loiter near the entrance.

Cid removed his leather gloves clumsily, forced to use his teeth for the task as his frozen fingers refusing to move properly. The pilot swore under his breath when he finally got the gloves off and revealed red, swollen hands.

"Gee Captain, that doesn't look too good," said Cait, the robotic cat sounding genuinely concerned.

"No shit…" answered Cid a bit more harshly than intended, trying to use his numb fingers to work the zipper of his jacket and failing miserably. The blonde gave up the useless exercise after a few failed attempts, a pained look twisting his features as tried to rub his hands together in an attempt to warm them up.

Taking pity on the other man, Vincent approached him, reaching both hands up towards the zipper slider on the pilot's coat. A wide eyed Cid took an involuntary step back when the clawed hand came up near his throat and Vincent realized his mistake, pulling the metallic appendage from sight. "May I?" asked Vincent as he pointed towards the zipper, making his intent clear this time.

"Oh, the zipper…" said Cid as he looked down towards where the gunslinger was pointing, an embarrassed flush creeping to his cheeks as he realized the other had only meant to help. "Yeah, go for it…"

Vincent brought his human hand up first, gripping the collar of the jacket next to the zipper to steady it. He brought his other hand into play a bit more cautiously this time around, mindful of the other's reaction. Cid seemed more at ease now, although he still kept his eyes trained on Vincent's claw as he used it to pull down the slider.

He muttered a barely audible 'thanks' as Vincent moved away, grateful for the kind gesture but still feeling self-conscious about his embarrassing reaction. At least his face felt warm, now. Taking advantage of the now open jacket, Cid brought up his cold hands and stuck them under his armpits to warm them.

Cloud came back a few minutes later, keys dangling in hand. "There were only three rooms available, but the owner says he can get enough fold-up beds for everyone," explained the Avalanche leader as he came up to the group near the door. "You guys mind sharing a room?"

"Not at all!" said Cait happily as he grabbed for the key Cloud was holding out. Cid and Vincent both shrugged, not caring either way who they ended up having to share a room with.

The trio watched as Cloud then proceeded towards the fireplace, where the rest of Avalanche was relaxing. He handed over one of the keys to Tifa as he explained the sleeping arrangements for the night.

"I could kill right now for a shower and a warm bed," said Cid mostly to himself as he brought his hands out from his jacket. He flexed his fingers experimentally, grimacing slightly as the previous numbness was replaced by tingling and burning as blood began to flow once more. Satisfied that he could at least move his hands now, despite the pain, Cid walked over to Cait and took the key from him, and headed for the staircase leading to the rooms upstairs. "There'd better be some goddamn hot water in this stinkin' place…" mumbled the pilot as he unlocked their designated room and opened the door.

Vincent watched the blond man disappear into the dark room, contemplating briefly about following after him to retire for the night, but decided against it. It was still quite early despite the darkness outside, and he wasn't in the mood to just lie down and do nothing. He looked briefly towards the fireplace, his gaze lingering upon his teammates briefly if only to reassure himself that they would be fine without him, then turned towards the exit.

As he went to open the door, he heard Cait Sith come up behind him. "You're going out in that weather?" asked the robot, and as Vincent looked at him over his shoulder, he was surprised to see concern on the cat's face. Vincent still didn't trust the Shinra spy, and couldn't think of a reason why Cait would care if he froze to death or not since they were technically enemies, but the sincerity in his voice threw him off.

"I'll be fine…" answered Vincent after a moment, unsure as to why he felt the need to put Cait Sith's concerns at ease.

A sudden gust of cold wind and snow filled the room for a moment, and before Cait realized, Vincent was gone.

* * *

After having spent a few hours exploring the snowy mountains surrounding Icicle Inn, Vincent was on his way back, walking unhurriedly down a somewhat steep slope leading to the village, the crisp crunch of the snow underneath his booths the only sound to be heard. While approaching the sleepy village, Vincent noticed a house that didn't quite fit in with the quaint mountain resort, the odd building covered in countless satellite dishes, wires and radar equipment sticking out from its roof.

Curious, and having nothing better to do at the moment, the gunslinger decided to investigate the oddity, walking quickly through the quiet streets towards where he'd seen the strange house from afar.

Arriving in front of the structure after a few minutes, Vincent could tell from this close up that the house was most likely uninhabited; all the windows were dark and most were boarded up, and no one had bothered to keep the path leading up to the front door clear of snow. He looked up to the panoply of instruments on the snow covered roof, noting Shinra logos on a few of the devices. The logos were badly faded, and he could tell that the equipment was in an advanced state of disrepair.

If this building belonged to Shinra, clearly they had abandoned it to the elements years ago, if not decades.

The gunslinger walked up to the door, finding it locked. There was no dead bolt, just a simple lock on the handle. He looked back to the deserted street briefly, making sure no one was around. Satisfied he was truly alone, Vincent gripped the door handle as tightly as he could with his human hand and turned the knob, the leather of his glove creaking against the cold metal. The door knob resisted for a few moments, until finally the locking mechanism inside failed with a sharp metallic pop. The knob turned without resistance now, and Vincent walked into the dark building cautiously, closing the door behind him.

His eyes were already adapted to the dark at that point, so he had no problem seeing. The building seemed to consist of two floors; a basement, accessible via a nearby stairwell, and the floor he was currently on. He looked around the large room, realizing there were rows of old computer and electronic equipment along two of the walls. The other end of the single room seemed to be used mainly as a living area, with a small kitchen area in one corner, and a queen sized bed in the other.

He headed for the dust covered electronics at his left, stopping in front of a large monitor. The monitor itself was dark, but surprisingly enough he could hear the low hum of fans inside the computers and controls, indicating they were in fact still powered on. He blew on the control panel to clear the layer of thick dust, trying to find which key or button would turn on the screen. He pressed a few buttons experimentally, and after a few tries he was rewarded with the screen flickering back to life. His pupils contracted painfully at the sudden brightness, forcing him to look away, blinking spots away as he waited for his eyes to accommodate to the sudden change in lighting.

When he was able to see properly again, he looked back to the monitor, Red eyes quickly scanning over what seemed to be a journal or blog of some sort, most of it nonsensical. Scrolling down through the mess of information, Vincent came across a series of videos.

He selected the first video, mildly curious as to its content, but not really expecting much seeing how short it was. His eyes widened in disbelief almost as soon as the video began to play, recognition evident on the gunslinger's face. It couldn't be him...

"Professor Gast…" whispered Vincent as he watched this ghost from his distant past displayed in the video in front of him.

His interest peeked, he quickly went on watching the other videos, the information provided by the decade old recordings proving more priceless than he could have ever imagined.

Realizing the significance of what he'd stumbled upon, the gunslinger closed the monitor and hurried out the door, intent on informing the rest of Avalanche about this discovery. As he entered the inn however, he realized that the others were probably sound asleep at the moment. Deciding there was no harm in waiting a few hours for them to wake, he walked up to the second floor, quietly disappearing into his room to wait for morning to come.

* * *

At dawn, Vincent waited until everyone had eaten to finally inform the group that he had something of importance to show them.

While they were clearly curious as to what it is he wanted them to see, Cloud decided that buying warmer clothes for the group and stocking up on supplies took precedent over all other matters. It wasn't until nearly noon that they finally followed Vincent to the old abandoned house, winter garments replacing their normal wardrobe.

"So, what exactly is this about?" asked Cloud as he followed the gunslinger inside the building, looking around suspiciously at all the strange machines and equipment strewn about the room.

Vincent didn't answer, he just walked over to the monitor, looking back to make sure the others would follow. They did, forming a loose semi-circle around the dark gunman. Glancing down at the control panel, he activated the monitor and selected the videos so that they would play back-to-back, before moving to the back of the group so he wouldn't obstruct their view.

A blurry image showed up at first, quickly coming into focus to reveal the same room they were currently in, only in much better condition.

'_Camera's ready!'_ A man walked into the frame, evidently a scientist judging by the white lab coat he was wearing. He beckoned at a person still outside the frame, and a moment later a lovely young woman appeared next to him, smiling shyly.

"Who are they?" inquired Tifa, not taking her eyes from the screen as she asked.

"I don't know the woman, but that's Professor Gast Faremis, head of Shinra's science research department 30 years ago." explained Vincent quickly. "He was the head scientist for the Jenova Project at the time."

"The _Jenova_ Project?" exclaimed the Cloud immediately, turning to face the gunslinger, but the latter just pointed to the video, indicating he should keep watching. The blond turned his attention back to the video somewhat reluctantly, but it was clear he didn't consider this discussion over.

'_Alright Ilfana,_' said Gast as he turned to the camera. '_What can you tell us about the Cetra and the Crisis?_'

The woman looked down at her hands for a moment, seemingly trying to find her words. Finally she looked up at the camera and began her tale. '_It happened almost 2000 years ago; our ancestors, the Cetra, heard the Planet's cry of pain…_'

Ilfana went on to explain how the Cetra living on the Northern continent, known as the 'Knowlespole' at the time, learned that the Planet had been wounded by something that had fallen from the sky. The Planet, in its attempt at healing itself, sapped the energy from the land surrounding the Knowlespole, causing the once fertile area to become a frozen wasteland. As the Cetra prepared to leave, they encountered the creature they called 'the calamity from the sky'.

'_It appeared to them as a friend, taking on the appearance of lost loved ones. It deceived them, and then infected them with the virus…_'

She explained how those infected fell into madness before being changed into horrible monsters, their will completely controlled by the alien being. After infecting the Northern settlement, it went on to the other continents, spreading the virus everywhere it went.

The video cut off shortly after, Gast judging that Ilfana was too distressed at the moment to elaborate further.

The next video started playing almost immediately, showing a similar angle of the room as the previous video. Ilfana was sitting down on a chair this time, with Gast standing next to her. A visible bump protruded from Ilfana's stomach area this time, showing she was pregnant.

'_Tell me Ilfana, what are the Weapons?_'

'_The Planet realized it had to get rid of that creature, because as long as it existed, it would prevent the Planet from ever fully healing. It's the same creature you and your team mistook for a Cetra; Jenova, the calamity from the sky. The Planet created massive creatures of unimaginable power to try and defeat the threat, but in the end, they were never used.'_

'_Why is that?'_

'_The few surviving Cetras fought the Calamity and managed to confine it, making the Weapons obsolete.' _

'_So the Weapons no longer exist?'_

'_Not exactly. Once created, they could not be undone; instead, they were put to rest in different locations across the world. Besides, just because Jenova became confined, doesn't mean it cannot become a threat again. The Planet has yet to completely heal itself even up to this day. It keeps watch on Jenova, waiting for a day where the danger will reemerge to awaken the Weapons once more.' _

'_Thank you Ilfana. That's enough for today.'_

The next video did not have any images, only sounds.

'_Sweetie, what are you doing with that camera?' _Ilfana's voice.

'_I want to tape our daughter, but the video's broken. She looks like an angel, doesn't she?' _

Soft bell like laughter is heard. _'Isn't it a little silly to tape her before we've even named her?'_

'_I already know how I want to name her.' _

'_Oh? What did you choose?'_

'_Aeris.'_

'_Aeris… I like that name. It fits perfectly.'_

A click is heard indicating the end of the video, but it's drowned out by soft gasps and whispers from the Avalanche members. They quiet down quickly when another video appeared on the screen, the last of the series.

The image is working, but the camera isn't stationary this time. Ilfana comes into view briefly, indicating that Gast is the one holding the camera.

'_What are you doing?_' she asks as he moves towards the bed at the far end of the room. A small bundle can be seen on the bed, slight movement apparent beneath the pink fabric.

'_I'm going to videotape Aeris, of course! Don't you want to have memories of her childhood?'_

'_You're going to spoil that child rotten, Gast.'_ Ilfana's words meant to chastise, but there was fondness and affection in her voice.

There's a knock at the door, and the image blurs as the camera is turned towards the entrance. Ilfana is already heading for the door. '_I'll get that._'

'_Whoever it is, just send them away.'_ Gast sounded a bit irritated at the interruption.

'_Wha… No!'_ No sooner has the woman opened the door, she attempts to close as quickly as she could, but two armed Shinra guards pushed their way in, sending her sprawling to the floor with a small cry.

'_Ilfana!'_ The camera shifts wildly for a moment before settling on its side, still filming the entrance from a table facing it. Gast rushes forward to the woman's side, helping her up. '_Go!_' he points towards the bed and Ilfana rushes out of the frame towards the living area. A man they all recognize as being Hojo enters the house, grinning.

Despite knowing what he was about to see, Vincent has a hard time keeping from snarling when the lunatic comes into view.

'_So, this is where you've been hiding all these years, Cetra…' _ The scientist then turns his attention to his colleague. _'Long time no see, Gast.'_

'_How did you find us?' _Gast meant to sound angry, but he could not completely hide the fear from his voice.

Hojo's smile fell, clearly irritated. _'Hmph… Well you didn't make it easy for me, but I have my ways. Did you really think you could keep this new specimen from me?'_

'_New specimen… Aeris?' _Gast laughed in disbelief. _'That's it! I've had it with this company. I'm severing all ties with Shinra from this moment forth. I want you all to leave, now!' _

'_It's me you want, Hojo!' _cried Ilfana as appears once more in the frame, holding on to the child protectively. '_Take me, but leave our daughter out of this!' _

Hojo laughed, amused once more. _'Oh no, darling. I need the _both _of you for my experiments.'_

'_Ilfana, run!' _One of the guards moved to intercept her, but Gast tackles him and they both come crashing towards the camera, knocking it to the floor, pointing it away towards a wall. A scuffle can be heard, followed by gunfire and screams. Hojo yells over the racket: '_Don't shoot at her, you idiots, I need her! Shoot _him_!' _

More gunfire, followed by a pained yelp.

'_Darling!...' _

'_Just go! Save Aeris!'_

'_You imbeciles, she's getting away! Go after her!' _

They can hear the guards running out of the room. For a few seconds, the only sounds in the room are strangled gasps as Gast struggles to breathe. A gun shot resounds unexpectedly, followed by silence.

Yuffie jumped at the sound, a surprised cry escaping her lips before she could stop it. She seemed horrified, as did the others watching the video.

'_What's this?' _Hojo's voice, followed by the sound of approaching footsteps. The camera shifts and a close up of Hojo's grinning face takes up the whole screen. _'What a thoughtful parting gift, Gast…' _The frame freezes, before going black when the video abruptly ends.

"He shot him…" Yuffie sounds shock as she continues to stare at the black screen. "He just… shot him…"

"It happened a long time ago, Yuffie," reminded the gunslinger, although he knew it wouldn't make it any easier to accept.

"_Shit_…" Cid swore under his breath has he moved away from the monitor, a strange look on his face as he locked eyes with Vincent. "Those two, Gast and Ilfana, were they… Those were _her _parents right?"

Cloud answered before Vincent had a chance to. "Those were Aeris's birthparents." The swordsman sounded almost broken, arms crossed in front of his chest as he stared off into nothing. He was clearly hurting, and making no attempts to hide it.

"Cloud…" Tifa placed a hand on the man's shoulder in an attempt to offer some comfort but he just shrugged it off, taking a step away from his childhood friend. The martial artist's frowned uncomfortably, but didn't try a second time. They were all still grieving the loss of Aeris in their own way and in Cloud's case, it meant he kept himself emotionally distant from the others. Tifa didn't like it, but she understood he needed time.

"So, huh… What exactly does all this mean?" asked Barret, the imposing gunman looking slightly confused as he looked over to the others.

"It means it's even more important for us to stop Sephiroth then we previously thought," answered Cloud darkly.

Barret still didn't seem to completely comprehend, so Vincent elaborated further. "He is in possession of the both the Black Materia andJenova's remains; there's no foretelling the amount of chaos that will ensue if we fail to stop him in time."

"Not to mention those Weapons," said Red, as he stepped forward, looking at Barret. "If what Ilfana said in those video is accurate, the Planet will no doubt set those creatures loose on the world once more if it feels threatened."

"Damn…" cursed Barret, overwhelmed by the magnitude of the information.

"So guys, tell me if I'm wrong here…" Everyone turned to Yuffie, waiting for her to continue. "Jenova is some kind of really old creep that fell from space, right?" The others nodded. "So if Sephiroth was created from Jenova, does that mean he's like, an _alien_?"

"I guess…" "No." Cloud began to answer, but was immediately cut off by Vincent, who had a disturbed look on his face.

The others were looking at him with questioning stares and Vincent sighed softly, knowing it was time for him to tell them what he knew about Sephiroth's origins.

"Sephiroth was not created; he was born 30 years ago to a beautiful woman…"

"So, Jenova isn't his mother, like he thinks?" asked Tifa.

"Sephiroth isn't entirely wrong either…" Vincent frowned, trying to think of the best way to elaborate so as not to confuse them further. "His birth mother was a woman named Lucrecia…" He frowns as he says her name, but manages to keep his composure and continues speaking. "She was one of Gast's assistants working on the Jenova Project. Jenova cells were injected into the womb in an attempt to create an Ancient, thus making Sephiroth what he is."

"They experimented on an unborn baby?" exclaimed Yuffie, eyes wide as saucers. "That's just sick!"

"How the hell do you know all this, Vincent?" asked Cid suddenly, suspicion written all over his face.

"He was there." Cloud cut him off before the gunslinger had a chance to answer. He looked over to the other man. "Weren't you, Vincent. You told us you were sleeping in that coffin for 30 years. It can't be a coincidence."

"You are correct," confirmed Vincent, knowing there was no use in denying it. He crossed his arms, somewhat uncomfortable with what he was about to reveal. "I was a member of the Shinra Manufacturing Department in Administrative Research – what you would refer to as the Turks."

"You're a Turk?" cried out Barret in disbelief.

"_Formally _of the Turks," corrected Vincent immediately. "I no longer affiliate myself with Shinra, for obvious reasons." He looked down at his claw with disgust, before hiding it once more beneath the folds of his cape and looking up once more to the others. "I was assigned to protect the scientists working on the Jenova Project at the Shinra Mansion. When the experiments began to have unpleasant effects on Lucrecia, I tried to put a stop to the madness. Things didn't turn out as I had hoped, and the experiment continued on as planned…"

"Oh, sure… Just following orders, right?" Cid's tone was condescending, and a little disgusted. "So what happened, they went and told you to '_fuck off_' and you just turned a blind eye on this fuckin' nonsense like a coward?"

Vincent's eyes flashed with anger for a moment, but he managed to keep control of it. "I _died_," deadpanned the ex-Turk, effectively shutting up the pilot, the latter now looking at him with a stunned expression. The others wore similar looks of astonishment on their faces. Deciding he'd had enough of this conversation, the gunslinger stalked off towards the exit and left.

* * *

It took about an hour for Vincent to calm down enough to return to the group. They were waiting for him at the inn, all packed up and ready to leave. Nobody asked him anymore questions about what had happened in Nibelheim 30 years ago, and for that he was grateful.

They made their way to the northern end of the village, towards a steep slope leading down the mountain side. The only way to reach the valley below was by the use of skis or snowboards, but as luck would have it, there had been a string of bad weather lately, and the trails were closed due to the risk of avalanches and people getting lost. They weren't expected to reopen for at least another week.

They turned back, unsure of what to do to remedy the situation. They had to find a way down to the other side of the mountain range, but with the people who owned the ski resort unwilling to rent them the necessary equipment, there wasn't much they could do for now.

Just as they were about to enter the village again, they heard a female voice up ahead. "Hey! Hey you, stop right there!"

They looked towards the source of the voice in time to see a young blonde woman in a blue suit running towards them, an angry look on her face. Vincent immediately recognized her as one of the Turks from Wutai, Elena.

She stopped a few meters in front of Cloud, struggling to catch her breath. "Cloud… huff…" She took a few deep breaths before trying again. "Cloud, you're under arrest, you asshole…"

"We don't have time for games, Elena," said Cloud dismissively, looking completely unimpressed. He moved as if to step around her, but stopped when she whipped out her gun.

"You're not going anywhere, Cloud. I'm gonna make you pay for what you did to Tseng…" she seemed overly emotional, but her gun was steady as she aimed it at the Avalanche leader.

"We didn't hurt your boss; Sephiroth did."

"Lies!" cried out Elena, her steely blue eyes filled with hatred. "I'll shut you up, you filthy terrorist!"

The young Turk rushed forward impulsively, swinging out her arm as if she intended to pistol whip the Avalanche leader. Unfortunately for her Cloud saw it coming a mile away and moved aside just as she reached him.

Elena slipped on the icy road as she rushed pass the swordsman, a surprised cry escaping her lips as she tumbled down a steep slope next to the path. She landed a few meters down, flustered and embarrassed but otherwise unharmed. She looked up towards the top of the hill, where the Avalanche members were currently watching her in amusement, some of them laughing.

Flushing with anger and embarrassment, she grabbed at her walkie-talkie. "This is Elena, requesting backup at the northern end of Icicle Inn. All available units respond to my location at once!"

"_Roger that. We'll be there ASAP."_

Shouts were heard almost immediately in the distance, coming from the other end of the village. The group turned their attention towards the approaching voices, realizing they were in trouble. It sounded as if Elena had brought a whole battalion with her.

"There they are! Get them!" Bullets started flying as the first of the Shinra guards rushed out from the village, and the group quickly realized this was not a fight they could win.

"Time to go!" said Cloud as he shot off in the opposite direction, towards the ski slopes. The others followed after their leader as quickly as they could, keeping their heads low out of fear of getting shot by stray bullets.

They managed to put some distance in between them and their pursuers, but quickly found themselves cornered as they reached the steep hillside. They looked around for an alternative, but the only path was the one leading back to the village.

"We're trapped!" cried out Yuffie, panic evident in her eyes.

"Like hell we are…" said Cloud as he stalked over to a row of snowboards chained to a nearby fence. Pulling out his sword, he brought down the massive weapon on the chain, cutting it in half and freeing the snowboards. "Everyone, grab a board!" ordered Cloud as he pulled down one of the snowboards for himself, strapping one foot quickly to the board.

The others rushed forward as one, each grabbing a snowboard with the exception of Red XIII. They looked around quickly for a toboggan or a sled, anything that would allow the four legged cat to ride down the mountain, but they ran out of time.

Bullets began flying again as the guards appeared over the bank of the road, quickly approaching their location. Vincent took out his gun and shot back a few times, trying to slow them and buy Avalanche a few precious seconds.

Seeing no alternative, Cloud grabbed Red as best he could, intent on carrying him down the slope with him. "Let's mosey!"

There was a slight moment of hesitation as they looked down the steep drop, but seeing as they were out of time and options, the group pushed their boards forward, past the point of no return.

Vincent felt his stomach drop at the initial moment where he dropped off the edge, feeling as if he were freefalling. The unpleasant sensation was gone quickly as he adjusted to this unfamiliar mode of locomotion, the feel of the snow rushing beneath his snowboard reassuring him that he was indeed still touching the ground.

It took him only a few moments to understand how to maneuver the snowboard left or right, by leaning his weight in whichever direction he wanted to go.

Ahead of him, Cloud, Tifa and Yuffie seemed to be adjusting just as quickly as him, controlling their boards with relative ease. He didn't dare look behind for the others, but he could hear Barret cursing somewhere nearby over the roaring wind, so he assumed they were doing fine.

They kept going like this for a few minutes, and Vincent almost thought they might make it down to the valley unscathed, but as they maneuvered out of a bent, they began to encounter trees and boulders.

They slalomed between the obstacles as best they could, but a minute later they found the main path blocked by a hill of snow, most likely the result of an avalanche. They veered off the path to the right towards a copse of trees and soon found themselves in trouble as the incline became steeper and steeper, until finally they were going so fast that they could barely control their boards enough to steer between the trees. When the tree cover suddenly cleared and revealed a cliff, there was nothing anyone of them could do to stop and they went flying off into the emptiness.

Vincent could hear the screams of his companions as they fell through the air, but there wasn't anything he could do to help any of them. He released the claps of his snowboard and allowed it to fly away from him, hoping it would help minimize his injuries during the landing. The ground was still very far away, but it was approaching at a terrifying speed.

The wind was deafeningly loud as he fell, catching in his cape and causing the crimson material to flap and swirl wildly all around the gunslinger. As fear took hold of him, Vincent suddenly began to feel a strange sensation at the very core of his being.

His mind seemed to go blank for a moment; next thing he knew, his vision was partially obstructed by what appeared to be his cape, only now he was completely engulfed in the swirling mass of crimson, the material no longer solid, but rather behaving like a heavy mist through which he could see. He realized he was no longer falling, but rather gliding towards the ground at a much safer rate.

There was a momentary feeling of elation at the sensation of flying, but before he could truly comprehend what was happening, the gunslinger realized he could no longer feel or see his body. He panicked and lost grasp of whatever power he had accidentally tapped into. His body returned to him, and he began to fall again.

He tried to call forth the strange new power a second time, but not knowing how he had done it the first time, he watched in horror as the ground rushed to meet him. He closed his eyes and jerked his arms in front of his face a second before he felt the impact, bright flashes of pain quickly turning to blissful darkness as he lost consciousness.

* * *

_**Author's note"**__ : This chapter was loads of fun to write; especially that last part. If anyone's wondering about what happened to Vincent while he was freefalling, it's just basically my take on that odd transformation we saw in 'Advent Children', when he saves Cloud from Kadaj and his gang. I'm still kind of debating whether or not to use Death Gigas and Hellmasker, so until I make up my mind I might as well have a little fun with this transformation. _

_Also, for those of you who are intimate with the FF7 timeline, I'm sure you've noticed that Vincent should have told the group about Sephiroth a long time ago; as soon as he came out of the coffin, actually. It never really made sense to me that he would just blabber off to a bunch of strangers he just met about anything related to his past so easily, so I decided to wait until now. It felt more appropriate to me. _

_Next chapter might not come around for 2-3 weeks, a month tops. I'm gonna be busy for about a month, but I promise to keep working on Chapter 17 whenever I find some free time. _

_Hope you guys enjoy reading this chapter as much as I did writing it. Don't forget to leave a review; it's always appreciated. See ya guys! :)_


	17. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII. Final Fantasy 7, the storyline and its characters belong solely to Square-Enix.**

**Chapter 17**

The first thing Vincent became aware of as he slowly returned to a more conscious state of mind was how much everything hurt. He remained still, unable to find the strength even to open his eyes, much less get up. His head was spinning, his memory of recent events made foggy from what he assumed to be a concussion. He kept slipping in and out of consciousness for a while, relieved to find that each time he woke the pain seemed to lessen a little.

When he regained full consciousness some time later, he was surprised to find as he finally opened his eyes that it was getting dark, indicating he had been unconscious for a few hours. He shifted painfully slow, rolling onto his back first, and then carefully pushed himself up to a seated position.

His whole right side was sore, and he could tell by the shooting pain in his right shoulder that his arm was dislocated. He grabbed at the limp appendage with his claw, grimacing against the pain as he pulled at the dislocated limb quickly, rolling his shoulder a few times until he heard a telltale pop as the joint fell back into place, relief replacing the earlier pain.

After making a quick check of his person to make sure he didn't have any other injuries that needed to be taken care of, the gunslinger pulled himself up painfully, taking in his surroundings for the first time since waking up. It was snowing heavily, making it hard to see very far, but he could make out a few outcrops of rocks and large boulders sticking out from the snow here and there. He noticed he was standing in a depression of snow, more like a small crater really, and he realized it had probably been created when he'd landed earlier. He realized that the snow had probably cushioned his impact and saved him from any serious injuries. He hoped the others had been as fortunate as him.

The others. He realized with a jolt that he couldn't see or hear any of his teammates in the vicinity. Looking around the strange scenery, Vincent tried to get a sense of where he was, and where he should go from here, but it was no use. Everything looked the same in every direction he turned. Frustrated, Vincent began walking towards the nearest outcrop of rock, hoping that by reaching higher grounds he might have better luck in orienting himself.

The wall of rock turned out to be further than he had originally suspected, the whiteness around him giving a false sense of closeness. As he finally reached his destination he scaled the slippery surface quickly, reaching the top in less than a minute's time. He scanned his surroundings from his viewpoint, the blizzard-like conditions making it very hard to make out much, but eventually he was able to spot the mountain cliff from which they had fallen in between two bursts of blinding snow.

He jumped back down to the ground and began to move towards the cliff, thinking that he might get lucky and find some of the others closer to the mountain. His memory of the fall was still a little fuzzy, but he remembered that strange sensation of flight he'd felt for a few moments, and assumed that he had probably landed much further than the rest of the group as a result.

His progress was slow as he treaded forward, the snow drifts at times reaching up to his mid-thighs. It took him nearly an hour before he found the first sign of his companions' passage; a barely visible trail of disturbed snow that had almost disappeared due to the winds and falling snow, heading north-east.

Vincent followed the trail, quickening his pace to try and catch up with whoever was travelling ahead of him. Darkness had completely fallen by then and despite his excellent night vision, the gunslinger almost failed to notice the snow covered remains of Cait Sith's mog when he came across it some time later. He walked over to the white monstrosity, digging at the snow around it to find that the robot had smashed up against some rocks when it had landed, rendering it broken and useless. He could not find any signs of Cait however, so he assumed the cat had either wondered off or had followed after whoever he himself was currently trailing.

After some time, he began to notice some disturbing patterns in the trail he was following. The trail was much clearer now, signaling he was catching up to whoever was making it, but he could now see the telltale signs of a limp, indicating the person was likely injured. Once or twice, he came across disturbed patches of snow where the person had stumbled and fallen.

It took another 20 minutes before Vincent began to hear voices some distance ahead, muffled by the wind. He soon recognized the voices as belonging to Yuffie and Cait Sith, and as he hurried over a snowy hill, he finally caught his first glimpse of the two near the bottom of the hill. Yuffie was kneeling in the snow, apparently struggling to regain her footing as Cait Sith shouted encouragements at her.

"Come on lass, you can do it! Just a little further!"

"I'm trying… Just… I just need a minute…" The girl was breathless; he could tell she was at the end of her strength.

Vincent hurried towards the pair, watching them turn towards him as they became aware of his approach.

"Who's there?" asked Yuffie as she finally found her feet, wide eyes searching the darkness as she brought out her Shuriken. She was standing awkwardly, leaning heavily to the right so as to not put too much strain on her left leg.

"Vincent!" exclaimed Cait before the gunslinger had a chance to announce his presence. "Oh boy, am I glad to see you!" The small robot rushed forward to meet him, a relieved expression on its cat-like features.

"Vinnie?" Vincent looked up towards the girl, noticing how she wasn't looking at him directly. He realized she probably couldn't see him all that well in the dark.

"It's me Yuffie," confirmed Vincent as he walked over to her, Cait following at his side. She reached out blindly when he came close enough and he grabbed hold of her gloved hand, pulling her to him gently and allowing her to ease some of the weight from her injured leg. He could feel her shivering against him, despite the warm parka she was wearing.

He felt a tug on his cape, and looked down towards Cait Sith. "Did you find any signs of the others?" asked the cat as soon as he had the gunslinger's attention.

Vincent shook his head in a 'no' gesture and Cait slumped forward a bit, clearly disappointed. "Well, hopefully they can find the cabin on their own in this storm."

"What cabin?" asked Vincent, intrigued.

"Oh, I guess you weren't there when I told Cloud about the cabin…" Cait rubbed at his chin as if he were thinking, remaining silent for a moment before he seemed to realize the gunslinger was still waiting for an answer. "Well long story short, there's a guy who owns a cabin not too far from the crater, about 20 kilometers north from here. It didn't show up on the map you guys had, but Shinra knows about it thanks to satellite images we have of the area. I figured it would be a good place to stop and rest before we have to face Sephiroth at the crater, which is why I marked it on the map for you guys when we were still in Icicle Inn."

"Did you just say _twenty_ kilometers?" Yuffie sounded absolutely crushed at the news, looking down with tired and weary eyes towards where she knew the small robot was standing. "You said we were almost there, Cait!"

"Whoops…" Cait slapped both hands over his mouth, having apparently not meant for the girl to know just how far they still had to go. Vincent guessed he's kept that information from her so as not to discourage her, to try and keep her going.

Vincent felt Yuffie's grip on his shirt loosen, and a moment later she was sitting in the snow with her injured leg stretched out in front of her, arms crossed. She seemed incredibly upset, eyes shimmering with tears of frustration.

"I can't do it… I just can't…" Heavy eyelids closed over stormy eyes. "I'm just so tired…"

"_No_ Yuffie! You can't fall asleep here! Yuffie!" Cait rushed up next to her, trying to pull at her arm but she just pushed him away weakly, mumbling nonsense under her breath as her eyes opened again, unfocused.

Warning bells rang through the gunslinger's head as he suddenly became aware of how bad off his young friend truly was. He hadn't noticed until now how pale her face was, or the horrible shade of purple on her normally rosy lips. He suspected she might be feverish, if the flushed patches on her cheeks and her overly-bright eyes were anything to go by.

He knelt down next to the shivering girl, quickly removing his cloak and dropping it over her small shoulders. It was far too big for her, the heavy material pooling around her petite form and making her appear even smaller, but at the very least it would provide her with a little extra protection from the raging blizzard.

He went about checking her injured leg and was satisfied to find that despite the amount of swelling around her left ankle, she at least didn't appear to have any broken bones. The pain from having her leg prodded seemed to ease Yuffie back to a more conscious state, and she looked up towards him with sleepy eyes. "Hey Vinnie," greeted the girl weakly, as if she had forgotten he was there to begin with. She looked around, confused. "Where is everyone?"

Not really knowing what to say to the delirious girl, he ignored her question, turning his attention instead to the fidgeting robot next to them. "How long has she been like this?" Cait flinched, obviously not enjoying being under the ex-turk's scrutiny.

"She was ok until maybe an hour ago," said the cat as he looked towards their young friend, the girl already beginning to doze off again. "I've been trying to get her to keep moving so she wouldn't freeze to death, but there's only so much I could do all by myself."

Vincent nodded, understanding Cait had done everything he could possibly do under the circumstances. "Can you guide us to the cabin without a map?" asked the gunslinger.

"Sure I can!" answered Cait right away. "I have a built-in GPS, I know exactly where it is." Vincent nodded again, reassured to know that they weren't just going to wander around the frozen landscape blindly.

He turned to Yuffie, touching her cheek lightly to get her attention. She blinked a few times as she woke, but didn't look at him. "Yuffie…" She finally looked up upon hearing her name, but she couldn't seem to focus. "Yuffie, I'm going to carry you, but I need you to be able to hold onto me. Can you do that?" He spoke slowly to make sure the girl understood what he wanted her to do. She frowned at first, but then slowly nodded.

The gunslinger shifted so that he was crouching in front on the girl with his back to her. He looked back over his shoulder at Yuffie, who had yet to move from her spot in the snow. "Grab onto my neck Yuffie," said Vincent when it became obvious the girl didn't understand what was expected of her. It seemed to do the trick as she finally shifted to a kneeling position, crawling on her knees until she was close enough to reach him. As soon as she had her arms around his neck Vincent reached behind, hooking his hands under Yuffie's thighs to support her weight, mindful of his claw so as not to injure her. Once he was satisfied she wasn't going to fall off, he rose up to his full height, shifting the girl around a bit so that her legs would rest more comfortably on each side of his hips. He felt her head loll against his shoulder, the exhausted teenager likely on the verge of dozing off again.

He turned his attention to Cait, who was looking up at him expectantly. "Lead the way," said Vincent, motioning with his head towards the direction they had already been travelling. The robot ran ahead immediately, having no trouble walking on the snow thanks to his light weight. Vincent fell into step behind him, the trio quickly disappearing into the stormy night.

* * *

"Hey Vincent! I think this place will do!" Vincent walked over to where he could hear Cait, keeping his head low to try and protect his face from the stinging ice pellets mixed in with the blinding snow. They had travelled quite a distance in the past few hours, but as the weather turned progressively worse, it became obvious that they would need to find some shelter to wait out the worst of it.

As he approached his companion's location, he realised that the cave Cait had found actually had heavy curtains hanging from the entrance like a makeshift door, indicating other people had been here previously.

He pushed aside the frozen curtains and walked inside, careful not to slip on the icy rocks near the entrance. Cait trotted in behind him, whistling in appreciation as he took in their surroundings. If Vincent had to take a guess, he would have to say that they had probably stumbled upon some sort of hideout used by local hunters and explorers.

The cave was about the size of a large bedroom, the ceiling just high enough so as not to bump one's head. There was dry firewood stacked up near the far end of the cave, out of reach of the elements. Next to the wood was a pile of furs arranged in what looked to be a crude sleeping area. Food supplies had been stacked on a slab of jutting rock to the right of the entrance, mostly consisting of canned goods and some pieces of frozen jerky.

He walked over to the sleeping area, kneeling down next to it and gently lowering his charge from his back onto the soft pile. She didn't wake, but began to shiver the moment she became separated from his body warmth. He pulled back the top layer and laid the sleeping Yuffie down to rest, covering her up with the fur so that only her head was visible, hoping it would help keep her warm.

Satisfied she would be alright for the time being, he gathered an armful of firewood from the nearby pile and walked over to a fire pit near the entrance, arranging the wood over the old ashes in a teepee-like fashion. He then fished out an unmastered fire materia from a slot on his gun – one of only two materias he owned, the other being lightning – and proceeded to cast the spell forth, lighting the dry wood on fire instantly.

"Hey! Look what I've found!" Vincent turned in time to see Cait jump out of a small wooden crate the gunslinger had failed to notice until now, the small cat holding up a health potion with a triumphant look on his face. Cait turned it over a few times as he walked to where Vincent was standing, scrutinising his find carefully. "Shoot, I think it's frozen. Do you think it'll still work if we give it to Yuffie?" asked the toy as he handed the small bottle over to his companion.

Vincent shrugged, having honestly no idea if freezing a health potion could somehow spoil it. He set the bottle next to the fire, hoping it would defrost quickly so they could administer it to their sick friend. Guessing Yuffie might get hungry once she woke, he grabbed two cans from the nearby shelf and placed them as close to the fire as he dared to, making sure to pierce both lids first with a clawed finger so pressure wouldn't build up to dangerous levels in the containers. He sat down next to the fire to wait, and Cait opted to do the same a moment later.

They sat together in silence pour a while, watching the flames dance and flicker in front of them. After a short time, Vincent felt Cait's gaze rest on him, scrutinising his exposed face, making the gunslinger wish for the concealment of his cape. Vincent simply ignored the indiscretion at first, but the minutes ticked by and the mechanical cat just kept on staring. Finally he had enough and turned his attention to his companion, the look of amusement on the cat's face only adding to his annoyance. "What?" he asked the other irritably.

"Oh nothing, really," said Cait nonchalantly with a smile, completely unaffected by the dark man's glare. "I was just admiring how little you've changed since your time in the Turks."

Red eyes narrowed, mild annoyance quickly turning to distrust. "And how exactly would you know that?" asked the gunslinger, his voice darkening with suspicion.

"I didn't know you back then if that's what you're asking," answered Cait as he brought both hands up in a defensive gesture, correctly guessing his companion's current line of thought. "I found your file in the old Shinra records and took a look at it," admitted the robot, still smiling. "I have to say, it is kind of odd to see you with short tidy hair and a blue suit in those pictures."

Vincent frowned, none too happy at having the Shinra spy snooping through his past like this. "If you're attempting to find something to use against me in those files, you're wasting your time."

Cait's smile fell at the accusation. "Hey, I'm not trying to blackmail you. I just got curious about you after you mentioned you were once part of the Turks, that's all."

Vincent didn't believe Cait, but neither did he feel like arguing at the moment, so he held his tongue and went back to staring at the fire, intent on ignoring the cat. Bristling visibly, the toy stumped up and moved to stand in the gunslinger's line of sight, an uncharacteristic scowl on his furry face. "You think I'm lying, don't you?" asked Cait, his voice going a higher pitch than usual.

"Yes," answered Vincent truthfully, curious as to why the other seemed so disheartened by his answer.

Cait was silent for a moment, pensive. "Gee, I guess I can't really blame you. I haven't really given you a whole lot of reasons to trust me, what with the whole spying on you guys and stealing the Black Materia..." Vincent didn't bother responding, but his silence spoke volume.

Cait sighed, his tiny frame slumping a bit in what Vincent guessed was either shame or guilt. "I'm not a bad person you know; I was only doing my job. I would have thought that you of all people could understand that, considering the type of work you used to do for Shinra."

Vincent's eyes became distant as he considered this, realising how much of a hypocrite he'd been. Cait's transgressions towards Avalanche up to this point paled in comparison with what he himself had done for Shinra in the past. He'd done unspeakable things in his days as a Turk; the many faces of those he'd tortured and killed in the name of that corrupt company still haunted in his mind to this day despite the passage of time. It was unfair of him to pass judgement on the Shinra employee based on what he was ordered to do by the company; if anything, he should at the very least give the man behind the puppet a chance to prove his true worth.

Come to think of it, Cait had been nothing but helpful and friendly in the days since Aeris' untimely death, even showing genuine concern where his team members' wellbeing was concerned. In fact, had it not been for the small cat intervention earlier that day, Vincent had no doubt that Yuffie would have likely ended up freezing to death in the snow.

Vincent looked up once more to meet with Cait's gaze, wondering how he'd failed to see the changes in his companion's behavior. He should have recognised the telltale signs of a guilty conscience when he himself had been burdened with his own for so many years.

Making up his mind, the gunslinger spoke up, intent on making things right. "I cannot deny that I've been treating you less than fairly, and for that I am sorry Cait." The gunslinger shifted a bit, grabbing the now thawed bottle of medicine to keep his hands busy while he spoke. "I'm afraid my hatred of Shinra may have skewed my views where you are concerned, and it has blinded me from seeing that you are not the one I have a vendetta against. Again, I apologise." There was a moment of silence between the two, but before it could get too uncomfortable Cait broke out in huge smile, small gloved hand extended towards the gunslinger. "Apology accepted, buddy!" Vincent hesitated for just a moment, before placing down the potion and extending his own human hand to shake hands with the automaton.

Yuffie groaned just then, causing the other two Avalanche members to turn their attention to the sick girl sleeping nearby. Vincent grabbed the potion once more and got up, walking over to the bundle of furs. Yuffie's eyes were opened but slightly unfocused. He knelt down next to her, worried about the fever he knew she had.

"Can you sit up?" he asked quietly, to which the girl nodded. She pushed herself up on her elbows slowly, and Vincent helped her sit all the way up with a steadying hand on her back. He grabbed an unused fur and bundled it up behind her so she could lean against it while sitting.

"How are you feeling?" he asked as he unscrewed the potion, handing the small bottle to his young companion once he got it opened. She downed the contents in one gulp, grimacing at the taste before giving the empty bottle back to Vincent. "Feels like I got run over by a herd of wild chocobos…." Yuffie's voice was scratchy, and she cleared her throat before continuing. "_Jeez_… My head feels like it's in a vice, and my leg is killing me…"

"The headache should go away once you eat. As for your leg, we'll just have to wait and see if that potion still had some potency to it." Vincent went to get up to fetch the food for Yuffie, but Cait was already coming over to them with a can in each hand. "Today's special is baked beans, followed by more baked beans," says the cat with a goofy grin plastered on his face. He handed one can to the girl and set the other down on the floor next to her. "Bon appetite!" he said with a small bow, to which Yuffie rolled her eyes.

She looked down at the can and frowned. "Huh… Do we have a can opener, or am I supposed to get this opened with my teeth?"

"I'm on it!" piped Cait as he rushed over to the wooden box in which he had found the potion earlier, jumping in to rummage through its contents in the search of something to use to open the cans. He came back out a moment later with an old can opener in one hand, and a spoon in the other.

Yuffie took the can opener from him and after a few stumbling tries, managed to get the can opened. Cait handed her the spoon and she dug in hungrily, finishing the first can in a matter of minutes. Vincent handed her the second can once she was done with the first, having taken the time to open it for her while she ate from the first one. She ate at a slower pace this time, her hunger mostly sated by then. She looked up in between two bites, her gray eyes scanning their surroundings curiously.

"Where are we?" she asked after a moment, setting the half-empty can on the stone floor beside her. She seemed to be doing much better then when she first woke, enough in fact to straighten and shuffle into a kneeling position, although her leg was apparently still a bit painful to move as she grimaced. "Please tell me this isn't the cabin we were looking for…"

"Nope, this is just a handy shelter we found to hide from the storm." answered Cait immediately. "We're still a few kilometers away from the cabin, but I think if the weather dies down, we might make it there in a few hours at most."

"Oh…" Yuffie looked down at her lap, a pensive expression darkening her features. Her face all but disappeared behind the high collar of Vincent's cape. Small gloved hands worried the red fabric pooling around her lithe form, although she didn't seem to really notice it at the moment. "What about the others?..." she asked finally, her gaze still downcast.

Vincent had expected her to ask about the whereabouts of their teammates, but having no satisfactory answer to give the girl, it still took him a moment to answer. "We haven't heard anything from the rest of the Avalanche as of yet," he answered carefully, keen red eyes trying to gage the girl's reaction, aware of how mercurial her emotions could be at times. Yuffie however barely reacted at all, a slight furrowing of her eyebrows the only indication that she had heard him. Vincent waited patiently for her to collect her thoughts, knowing she still had questions. He didn't have to wait long.

"Do you think they're all doing ok? I mean, Cloud and the others… They had to make it, _right_?" Grey eyes locked with crimson ones, and Vincent was caught off guard by the intensity of the emotions he could see in the girl's eyes – hope, worry, exhaustion – all warring for dominance in the stormy depths.

Unsure himself as to the fate of the others, he answered as best he could. "I have no way of knowing for sure, Yuffie. My hope is they survived the landing and were able to find one another. If they did, than chances are they will be alright. If not…" Vincent paused, seeing distress in his young friend's face. He decided not to elaborate further, hoping to spare the girl any further stress. "There is no use in tormenting yourselves over 'what if' scenarios, Yuffie. There is nothing we can do to remedy the situation, and worrying over it won't change a thing. The best thing you can do right now is rest and concentrate on getting better."

Yuffie's features hardened quite suddenly. "Gawd… I'm _fine_!" she argued stubbornly, pushing up to stand despite her injured leg. "We've wasted enough time here as it is. The sooner we leave, the sooner we can find the others." She nearly tripped on Vincent's cape, but somehow managed to keep her footing as she stomped away from the bedding, towards the cave's entrance. She looked over her shoulder at her companions, slightly confused as to why they weren't following. "What are you two waiting around for? Come on, we have to get going!"

"I don't think that's such a good idea, lass…" warned Cait as the girl stepped past him, but she only rolled her eyes at him. "I'm not going to just sit around here just because of a bum leg and a little snow. Either you two come with me, or I'm leaving on my own!" Not waiting to see what they would do, the adolescent turned to the exit, intent on leaving.

Vincent rose up and followed after her silently, knowing there was no point in arguing with the emotional girl at the moment. He watched as she stormed over to the doorway and angrily swiped aside the heavy curtain aside to leave, only to stop in her track when a freezing gust of wind and snow blew into the small shelter. She stood there for a moment, watching the raging storm going on outside, before closing the curtain again as she realised leaving was not an option at the moment.

She turned to the other two occupants in the room, her cheeks flushed crimson with embarrassment. Vincent's face was unreadable as always, but Cait's wide grin clearly showed he had enjoyed the little scene she'd just made, and her subsequent humiliation. The girl crossed her arms and glared at the smiling cat, her blush deepening even more. "Okay fine… You were right, I was wrong…"

Cait had the grace to hold his tongue as he sat down by the fire, although his amused grin stayed in place. He patted the ground next to him, and after a moment of hesitation, Yuffie plopped down next to him, happy to just pretend she hadn't just made a fool of herself. Vincent joined them by the fire soon after, a comfortable silence falling over the group as they patiently waited for the storm to end.

* * *

"You know, when this is all over, I'm gonna move to Costa Del Sol." Yuffie was mumbling mostly to herself as they advanced painfully slowly in the freshly fallen snow, holding the heavy red fabric of Vincent's cape tightly against her form to keep the frigid wind from reaching her. The light snow falling around them stuck to her hair and clothes, slowly melting and seeping through and making the girl shiver. "Yup! Nothing but sunshine and warm sand from now on for this girl!"

Vincent didn't bother to look back towards the frustrated girl, knowing anything he said at the moment would only serve to sour her mood further. Instead he ignored her rant and concentrated on following Cait Sith up ahead, the small robot having no problem whatsoever with the snow as he walked on top of the fluffy surface. The snow reached nearly up to Vincent's hips, which meant that he had to virtually plow through it to move ahead. Yuffie followed in his steps as best she could, but she was still struggling quite a bit with the loose snow and Vincent could tell she was tiring quickly.

Had Cait not assured them they would arrive any minute now, the gunslinger would have insisted they stop for a while in order to allow Yuffie to rest a little, but as it was, they were better off pushing forward a little longer and wait to rest when they finally arrived at their destination. Vincent just hoped Cait wasn't wrong about the cabin's existence, or they were in trouble.

Thankfully it seemed the Shinra spy had excellent information concerning the general layout of the area, and after climbing one last hill they were able to see a log cabin out in the distance, a thin trail of smoke coming from its chimney. The wooden structure seemed miniscule nestled as it was at the foot of the gigantic wall of what could only be a crater.

"What did I tell you guys!" said Cait as he stopped at the top of the hill, pride irradiating from his little frame as he waited for his two companions to catch up. "Right where I said it would be!"

"_Sweet Gaia_…" whispered Yuffie as she caught sight of the small cabin, evidently relieved at the sight. "I was beginning to think we were never going to find this stupid place…"

"Ahh… So little faith in poor little Cait! I'm hurt!" Said Cait dramatically as he turned to face the girl, hands splayed over his chest where his heart would be if the mechanical cat had one.

Yuffie gave the cat a look that showed she clearly wasn't falling for his act, but when Cait smiled brightly at the girl, she couldn't help but smile back. "Thank you, Cait," she said with genuine gratitude, giving her furry companion an affectionate pat on the head. "We couldn't have made it this far without you."

There was a strange flicker of emotion on Cait's robotic feature and his usually goofy smile faltered for a moment, but the mechanical cat quickly went back into character, bringing a hand up behind his hand in a mock show of modesty, digging at the snow with the tip of his tiny boot as if embarrassed. "Aww gee Yuffie, don't mention it!"

"Let's go, goofball… I'm freezing here." said Yuffie, rolling her eyes at her companion's antics.

"Yes ma'am!" Cait saluted and ran ahead, towards the cabin. Yuffie tried to follow him ahead of Vincent, but quickly gave up since the snow came up nearly to her waist. She plopped herself in the snow as she waited for Vincent to move ahead of her, mumbling nonsense under her breath about outlawing winter. The gunslinger ignored her complaints as he walked past the girl still lounging in the snow, but when he heard her call out his name, he stopped and turned to see what she wanted.

"Vinnie?.." The pleading look in her eyes made him weary.

"What is it, Yuffie?" he asked cautiously, although he suspected he already knew what she was going to ask.

"I'm really, _really_ tired and I don't think I can walk any further…" she began, looking as frail and innocent as she possibly could as she spoke. "Do you think maybe, that you could… You know…" she trailed off lamely, but it was clear what she wanted.

"You want me to carry you." It wasn't a question, as they both already knew what it was the girl was asking.

"Please?..." asked the girl pleadingly, giving him her best puppy eyes.

Vincent looked back towards where Cait Sith had headed, estimating the cabin at being roughly a kilometer away at the most. Clearly, Yuffie was more than capable of reaching their destination without the risk of collapsing from exhaustion. Turning to Yuffie once more, Vincent entertained the thought of simply telling the girl to walk, but realised that doing so was sure to end up with more whining which he didn't have the patience to deal with at the moment. His loss of resolve must have shown on his face without him realising it because before he had a chance to speak Yuffie jumped up happily, a triumphant smile stamped on her face.

"Thank you thank you thank you _sooo _much!" she cried out as she launched herself forward to give the tall man a quick side hug. Defeated, Vincent gently untangled himself from the excited girl and crouched down in front of the girl in silent invitation. As soon as he felt her arms around his neck he straightened up, Yuffie's now familiar weight against his back strangely comforting for some unknown reason. The gunslinger began moving at a fast pace towards the distant cabin, the anticipation of finally being out of this insufferable wasteland of snow and ice giving him renewed energy.

* * *

The room was lit in a warm glow, the fireplace the only source of light in the cozy room. Vincent was stretched out on the only sofa in the sparsely furnished room, tired beyond belief but unable to find sleep just yet. He could hear snoring coming from the cabin's lone bedroom, and while he would usually find this annoying, tonight the familiar racket caused by Barret and Cid could only be described as reassuring since it meant his companions were safe and sound.

The intense relief he'd felt when he, Yuffie and Cait had entered the cabin to find the rest of Avalanche alive and well was beyond anything he could describe. He hadn't realised how attached he'd grown to the mismatched group of rebels until that moment, and while he worried over the implications of this discovery, he just didn't have any energy to spare to really think about it at the moment.

The initial reunion had been somewhat emotional, involving far more physical contact than Vincent would normally allow. After a tearful hug from Tifa and a few pats on the back from the men, Vincent had been relieved to have the attention taken away from him by Yuffie and Cait, the two all too happy to regal the others with details of their ordeals in the past 24 hours. Vincent had recovered his trusty cape from Yuffie and had settled himself in a chair at the far corner of the room, listening to his companions with interest.

When Yuffie and Cait were done talking, Tifa had gone and explained their side of the story. Apparently she and the others had been lucky in their misfortune, in the sense that all five of them had somehow landed close to one another, and that none of them had been seriously injured in the fall. The martial artist explained how they tried to look for them at first, but had been forced to give up after a couple hours of fruitless searching.

Vincent could tell Cloud had been the one to make the difficult decision to leave them behind, the guilt plainly written on the young leader's features. The gunslinger couldn't fault him for his decision though. The immediate wellbeing of the others had to be his top priority at the time, considering how the blond had no way of knowing if any of their three missing companions were even alive or not.

Tifa went on describing how they had been caught off guard by the snowstorm during the night, but without any shelter they had been forced to keep on walking blindly, not knowing if they were even going in the right direction. They'd been on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion and exposer when they happened upon a stranger in the storm. Turns out it was the owner of the cabin they'd been searching, an old hermit by the name of Holzoff.

Mr. Holzoff had guided the weary group back to his cabin, where he'd generously offered them shelter and food, refusing any payment. The old man had explained that he'd been running this place as an outpost of sorts for hikers and travellers who tried to make their way to the northern crater, in an effort to aid those foolish enough to try to scale its treacherous walls. He did this because of a friend he'd lost years ago after they had foolhardily attempted to climb the crater unprepared, and felt that any payment for the service would be an insult to his friend's memory.

Now hours later after they had been reunited, the Avalanche members were all sound asleep, the exhaustion of the past few days having finally caught up with them. Red XIII was curled up next to the fireplace nearby, while Cait Sith sat propped up in the far corner of the room, deactivated for the night. The others were sleeping in the bedroom, where a set of three bunk beds had been set up for travellers passing by.

Mr. Holzoff had tried to get Vincent to sleep in the room with the others, but the ex-Turk had insisted he wasn't tired and didn't need to sleep. He'd lied. Other than the few hours he'd spent unconscious in the snow the previous day, he hadn't had any sleep since they had left Gongaga two weeks prior. He honestly couldn't remember the last time he'd felt this worn-out, but regardless of this he couldn't in good conscience allow their gracious host to sleep on the sofa on account of him.

So here he was lying awake in the quiet room, his mind numb with exhaustion but yet still unwilling to completely surrender himself to the arms of Morpheus, fearing the nightmares that were sure to haunt his slumber. As strong willed as the gunslinger was however, he unfortunately could not fight his own body indefinitely and without really realising it he slowly drifted off into a state of fitful sleep.

* * *

**Author's note: **_Ok so I hadn't intended to cut off this chapter at this particular spot, but I realised that if I kept writing up to where I had originally planned, I would end up with a monster of a chapter. I've therefore decided to post this as is and continue working on the rest as a separate chapter, if for no other reason than to reward you guys for being so patient with me and my dreadful lack of updates in the past two months. Not much action in this one unfortunately, but the next one is sure to make up for it. ;-)_

_Chapter 18 is in the works as we speak, but I'll be honest with you, I may not be able to write very quickly since I'm 5 months pregnant and I'm finding that sitting down in one position for any extent of time to be highly uncomfortable. I'll keep writing though and should hopefully be able to get 2 or 3 more chapters out before my due date. Love you guys, and I hope you enjoyed this chapter! :-)_


	18. Chapter 18

**Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII. Final Fantasy 7, the storyline and its characters belong solely to Square-Enix.**

**Chapter 18**

"Now you kids remember what I've told you about not stopping until you get to the caves." Mr. Holzoff, the kindly old owner of the cabin, had spent most of the morning fussing over all the little details concerning the climb the group was about to attempt, going so far as to donate them a good chunk of his climbing gear when he realized just how underequipped they were. "You won't get no shelter from the glacial winds going up the wall of that crater. If you stop for more than a few minutes, you will freeze to death."

"Don't worry, Mr. Holzoff," reassured Tifa as she shouldered an overstuffed backpack, smiling brightly at the man who had saved their lives the day prior. "We're well prepared thanks to you, and we'll be sure to look out for each other's safety."

The members of Avalanche filed out one by one out the door into the darkness, the sun having yet to rise over the Northern Continent. Tifa, Cloud and Vincent lingered inside the small cabin a moment longer to double check they hadn't forgotten anything, going over the list the old man had provided them quickly. Satisfied everything was in order, they made their exit, but not before thanking their gracious host profusely one last time.

The trio caught up to the others quickly, the rest of Avalanche having stopped to wait for them at the top of a nearby hill. Just as Cloud moved to take the lead towards the towering cliff in the distance, Cait Sith intercepted him, the tiny robot looking uncharacteristically anxious as he fidgeted in front of the Avalanche leader.

"What is it, Cait?" asked Cloud somewhat impatiently, the blond swordsman wanting nothing more than to get going on their trek as quickly as possible.

There was an awkward pause before the robotic cat finally started speaking. "I'm really not supposed to tell you guys about this. I'm gonna be in heaps of trouble if Shinra finds out…" Cait was digging his shoe into the snow covered road nervously, eyes downcast as he spoke. The group's interest suddenly piqued, the others formed a loose circle around the small Shinra spy as they waited for him to continue.

Cait Sith sighed, looking up at Cloud after a moment. "Rufus is on his way here. He should be arriving at the crater in a few hours; half a day tops." There were a few surprised gasps and murmurs from his teammate as they processed this new information, but they quickly fell silent again as Cloud spoke up.

"You've made your allegiances clear back at the Gold Saucer when you double crossed us. Why would you now decide to share secret information from Shinra with us?" asked the blond swordsman distrustfully, wary that the spy amongst them was only sharing this information in order to lay out a trap for them.

"Yeah, you scheming little flea bag," interjected Cid as he glared daggers at Cait. "You already fucked up our plans before. For all we know, you might just be setting us up to get captured or killed."

Cait rubbed the back of his furry head with a white gloved hand, looking for all the world conflicted. "I don't think there is anything I can say or do to make you believe me, to be honest. I don't know what it will take to make you trust me again…" Cait Sith yelped as he was unexpectedly hauled up by his tail by Barret, the imposing gunman sporting an angry scowl as he eyed the robot.

"How's about you let me talk to my daughter for a start, and then we'll make up our minds about whether we should believe your goddamn lyin' mouth or not."

"Huh... Gee… Well, you see that's not really possible at the moment…" answered Cait lamely as he hung upside down in Barret's strong grasp. Seeing the dark skinned man's face turn an even darker shade with suppressed rage, the Shinra employee decided to quickly elaborate before Barret did anything regrettable, such as adding a few bullet holes through his circuitry.

"Marlene is fine, I swear!" said the cat quickly, holding his hands out in a defensive gesture. "She's in a safehouse in Midgar with Ilfana. I've been visiting them whenever I'm not stuck in the Shinra Tower to make sure they're well taken care of." Cait paused for a pensive moment, before speaking up again in a subdued tone of voice. "You have a really great kid, you know. I'm sorry I had to meet her this way…"

Warring emotions flashed across Barret's face for a few seconds, and after mumbling a few choice words under his breath he finally dropped Cait unceremoniously onto the snowy road. "You'd better be taking real good care of my baby girl," voiced the bereft father as he glared pointedly down at the Shinra puppet. "If she tells me you harmed her in way… If you laid a single goddamn finger on her, I _swear _to Gaia…" Barret trailed off, leaving his threat open ended. With an angry huff, he stomped away from the source of his aggravation to fume privately.

Cait looked up at the remaining Avalanche members, unease and embarrassment clearly visible on his furry features. Finally after an awkward moment he got up, dusting off the snow from his fur quickly before getting back into character, his usual goofy smile etched on his face. "Well, that went better than I expected," said Cait happily before trotting out of the circle formed by his comrade, heading in the general direction of the cliff.

The others watched him go for a moment, most of them still unsure about whether or not they should trust Cait about his revelation. Seeing as it didn't really matter either way since nothing would stop Cloud – and by extension Avalanche – from reaching Sephiroth in the crater, they wasted no time on useless debates and simply continued on towards their destination.

* * *

"H-have I ever t-told you how much I hate being c-cold?" asked a shivering Yuffie as she was hauled up onto a small icy ledge by Vincent. The two were currently lagging far behind the others as they slowly climbed up the sheer cliff side, mostly due to a near disastrous fall by the young ninja earlier which had required the Vincent's intervention.

The gunslinger didn't bother to answer the young girl's question, knowing she just wanted to vent at the moment and wasn't actually expecting a response. As he secured their position on the icy ledge, he tried to determine where the others currently were, but could not spot them up above. He surmised they had probably made it to the caves by now and were most likely waiting for them to catch up.

Vincent was about to resume his climb when he felt a thug on his cloak. He looked back to his companion, the girl visibly shivering as she dropped the red fabric in favor of hugging herself tightly in a vain attempt to keep warm. "I n-need a quick breather," explained Yuffie before he had a chance to ask, her voice quivering.

"If we stop, you'll freeze," reminded Vincent, knowing that if they didn't get moving again quickly, they would be in serious trouble. Just as she seemed about to argue, a cold gust of wind buffeted the two fighters, pulling a miserable complaint from Yuffie's bluish lips as she edged closer to her tall companion in a vain attempt at finding shelter. All thoughts of breaks and resting having now vanished from her mind, the freezing girl began stomping her feet and rubbing her arms and hands vigorously to try and get her body temperature back up, only to realise after a few short seconds that it was amounting to nothing. Giving up on her fruitless attempts at warmth, the girl resumed her slow but steady climb with Vincent in tow, the normally nimble teenager's motions made clumsy and sluggish by the numbness she felt throughout her body.

It took them about twenty more minutes of climbing before they finally reached a large ledge leading to an enormous cave. The others weren't in the immediate vicinity, but multiple sets of tracks leading into the cave assured them that their companions had already made their way through here. Impossibly, the air seemed even colder up here than it had during their interminable hike up the face of the cliff wall, prompting the two lagging members of Avalanche to hastily seek shelter inside the darkened cave.

The immediate entrance was somewhat drafty, but the surrounding air quickly stilled as they tracked after their companions deeper inside de cave system, making Yuffie sigh with relief as she walked next to Vincent.

The two carefully made their way through the winding tunnel, the small flashlight held tightly in Yuffie's grasp barely cutting through the thick darkness now surrounding them. Although they could no longer see their companions' tracks as they trekked deeper into the subterranean gallery, neither one of them worried too much about it as there was only one possible path to follow, which meant they were bound to run into the rest of their group sooner or later.

They walked side by side in companionable silence for a few minutes, the echoes of their footsteps and the faraway howl of the wind the only sounds to reach their ears. Silence having never been Yuffie's strong suit, it did not take long for the adolescent to begin talking once more.

"You don't really feel the cold, do you Vincent?" inquired the grayed eyed girl in a mostly even voice, although the ex-Turk could still detect a slight quiver in it due to their chilly surroundings.

Vincent locked eyes briefly with Yuffie, the young girl making no attempt whatsoever to mask the open curiosity showing on her youthful features as she waited for his response.

"I can feel the cold, but not in the same way you do," answered the ex-Turk carefully, his red gaze trained on the darkness ahead of them once again. His eyebrows furrowed slightly as he tried to find the best way to explain his unique situation to Yuffie so as not to leave her confused. "I can still remember what it felt like to be truly cold from… before Hojo…" Vincent hesitated on that last part, trying to repress unpleasant memories summoned to the fore of his mind at the mere mention of his troubled past. Shaking his head slightly to clear his head, he continued.

"Whatever was done to my body has made it so I can still tell if it's hot or cold, but it no longer affects me physiologically."

"Hmm…" Yuffie mulled over her companion's words for a few moments, the beam from her flashlight moving in random patterns through the veil of darkness as the girl's attention strayed.

"You know, given how freakin' cold it's been the past few days, I almost feel like I should be envious of you…" she said finally with a forced chuckle, trying to make light of the situation. "Although I'm not too sure about the trade-off, what with having to share your body with monsters and all..." She attempted to smile teasingly at her companion, but sobered up quickly at seeing Vincent's expression darken almost imperceptibly.

"I'm sorry, Vincent, I don't know why I said that. I didn't really mean it." She kicked at a small chunk of loose ice and watched it disappear into the darkness, trying to distract herself from the awkwardness she felt at the moment and failing miserably. She tried hard to find a safer topic to discuss, anything to wipe that gloomy expression from her friend's face, but a sudden blast cut short her current train of thought.

"What was…" her voice was drowned out by yet another deafening blast, this one now recognisable as being from a violent explosion originating from somewhere up ahead.

"Hurry," urged the now hyper vigilant gunslinger as he sprinted towards the source of the explosion, Yuffie following close behind.

The sounds of ongoing battle now discernible as they quickly approached their target, it became clear that the rest of Avalanche had run into some trouble in their absence. After one last turn, the tunnel finally opened up into a fairly large cavern, giant ice stalactites hanging precariously over their stalagmite counterparts here and there in the icy room. Mako seemed to be infused and frozen inside some of the ice formations, allotting a faint green glow to the cave.

Vincent scanned his surroundings upon entering the room in search of their companions, immediately noticing that both he and Yuffie were on the upper most level of this new area. Running over to the nearby edge, the gunman spotted the others two levels down, fighting what could only be described as a giant ice golem. The creature towering over the group of fighters seemed to be entirely made out of boulders and large chunks of ice, the mismatched pieces arranged in a crude humanoid shape.

An icy path to their right led down to the lower level in a wide arc around the room, but Vincent ignored it, taking the more direct route and leaping down directly to the floor level, firing repeatedly at the threat below on his way down. Vincent heard a thud on the landing behind him as Yuffie jumped down after him to the second level, the nimble ninja appearing next to the gunslinger a second later as she hopped down the final few meters to the bottom of the cave.

No sooner had they landed, they found themselves having to dodge an onslaught of needle sharp icicles aimed their way, the golem unmistakably enraged at the sight of two new intruders on its turf.

Shards of ice impaled themselves into the frozen ground as Vincent dive rolled towards the icy abomination currently threatening Avalanche, skillfully avoiding the lethal projectiles. The ex-Turk could see Yuffie from the corner of his eyes as she summersaulted away from the golem's line of fire, throwing her Shuriken at the creature as a means of distraction before dashing across the room to join up with the other combatants, her Shuriken returning to her hand a moment later.

"Fire!"

Light filled the cavern for a few seconds as the powerful spell cast by Red manifested itself, a booming explosion of scorching flames enveloping their foe as it roared in pain. The Ice Golem trashed around the room, swinging its massive arms around wildly as if trying to strike an invisible foe. Taking advantage of the momentary lull in the fight, Vincent rushed over to his battle weary teammates.

A quick inspection of the ragtag group of fighters showed that they were for the most part uninjured and well, with the exception of Cid. The foul mouthed pilot had somehow ended up with the lower half of his body encapsulated in ice, rendering him unable to move from his current spot at the back of the group.

"This isn't working, we need to find a new strategy," said Cloud in a commanding voice, the blond barely acknowledging the arrival of the two lagging members of his team as he concentrated on the situation at hand. Already, the flames licking at the golem's icy exterior were dying down, leaving behind little more than a few scorch marks.

"But Cloud, fire is the only magic that seems to have any real effect on it," argued Tifa as she readjusted her leather gloves. "And with what happened to Cid when he got too close to that thing…" the martial artist trailed off, but there was no need for much of an explanation as to what had happened.

Ignoring Tifa's warning and the muttered curses from the aforementioned pilot, Cloud took a few steps towards the now recovered ice monster, his sword held out in front of him as he readied for a head on attack.

"Wait!" yelled out Yuffie, jumping in front of the group and forcing their leader to pause in his attack. "Let me try something…" She pulled out a materia from one of her coat pockets, the small sphere glowing almost immediately in the girl's gloved hand as she tapped into its inner power.

"Ifrit!"

She called out the Summon's name, the fire-elemental materialising in front of the girl in a blaze of hellfire a fraction of a second later. "Melt that overgrown popsicle into a steaming mud puddle!" The spunky girl punched the air a few time in excitement as she gave out the order. The green skinned Summon roared challengingly at its polar opposite across the room, seemingly more than happy to comply with its current master's wishes.

The group moved away from the impending battle as best they could in the confined area, Barret and Cloud each grabbing Cid underarm and sliding him along to safety despite the man's indignant protests.

The distinctive feel of gathering magic permeated the room moments before Ifrit unleashed a string of fierce fire-based attacks at its opponent, culminating in a spiraling stream of fire that completely engulfed the ice golem before it had a chance to counter.

Its purpose achieved, the Summon disappeared, dissipating into bands of lifestream. Smoke and steam obscured the far end of the room from view, and for a few tense seconds Avalanche held out hope that the golem was defeated.

It seemed their foe would not die so easily, unfortunately, as the misshapen creature immerged limping from the mist not long after. It was worse for wear; much of the ice at its front having melted away, dislodging many of the smaller boulders from its large frame. One arm had completely disintegrated from the shoulder down, leaving the ice golem somewhat off-kilter from the now unbalanced weight distribution. It nearly toppled over as it tried to take a step their way, more bits of ice falling off as it struggled to regain its footing.

"That thing looks just about ready to croak," observed Cait Sith, the doll whistled in appreciation, giving Yuffie the thumbs up. "Good thinking, Yuffie!" The girl beamed with pride, a half smile etched on her lips as she put away her materia.

"Ain't gonna take much now," said Barret as he took a few steps towards the crippled ice monster, gun-arm aimed dead centre on the foe's chest area as he let the bullets fly. The ice golem screeched horribly as the bullets tore into its already mangled body, its lone arm coming up high in front of it in what first appeared to be a defensive gesture. Only it wasn't trying to protect itself. Instead, the massive arm swung down like a mallet, hitting the cavern floor with such force that the resulting shockwave nearly knocked the Avalanche members off their feet.

"Heads up!" yelled Cid as he gestured wildly towards the ceiling. Everybody looked up towards the ceiling in unison, gasps and curses being elicited from the fighters as they realised that multiple ice stalactites had been shaken loose by the impact and were now raining down towards them. The group scattered about the room, attempting as best they could to avoid being impaled or crushed by the falling icicles.

Having leapt onto a high outcrop away from any immediate danger, Vincent looked back down towards the chaotic scene below, trying to make sense of what was happening. Most of the others had found relative shelter by hugging the walls of the cave, he found, although they were still being pummeled by icy shrapnel as the icicles broke apart on impact.

Cloud had remarkably held his ground next to Cid, their frozen companion made too heavy by the ice to be easily moved to safety on such short notice. In a surprising display of strength and agility, the capable swordsman was hacking and slashing at the falling icicles with apparent ease, a testimony to the man's unmatched skills with a broadsword.

So distracted were the others down below, they failed to notice the ice golem rapidly approaching the two exposed men, a shimmering veil of ice crystals appearing around the giant's mighty fist as it prepared an ice-based magic attack.

Crouching, Vincent propelled himself downwards off the ledge towards the threat, gun blazing. The bullets ripped through the golem's shoulder and neck, the remaining arm first going limp as the ice holding it together was blasted to bits, before falling apart completely when the gunslinger landed heavily onto the icy monster's broad shoulders.

The ice golem spun around roaring, trying to dislodge its attacker, but the caped gunman held on stubbornly. By now the icicles had stopped falling, allowing the rest of Avalanche to join in on the fight.

Unable to fend off the attacks coming from all sides, the golem appeared to grow resigned to its fate, its movements slowing to a crawl as its legs and torso were hacked to pieces by Avalanche. However this assumption quickly proved to be wrong as the same shimmer of ice dust from before started building up around the group, a sure sign of an impending magical attack.

"Shit!" cursed Barret, recognizing the danger.

"Move out of range!" Cloud barked out the order as he gestured for the others to retreat, but ice had already begun to form all around them at an exponential rate.

Acting quickly, Vincent wedged his prosthetic in the space that served to articulate the head from the ice golem's body, talons facing upwards. With a quick, powerful jerk, the demon-enhanced gunman tore the head off its shoulders, sending it flying a few paces away. The expanding ice melted away before the head hit the floor, the source of its magic now gone. The ice holding Cid captive met a similar fate, large fissures appearing on the block of ice before it fell apart around him.

Vincent felt himself falling as gravity took its toll on the inanimate chunks of ice and rocks that made up the golem, the previously cohesive pieces now falling apart beneath his feet. The gunslinger rode down atop the collapsing pieces of the golem all the way to the ground, nimbly jumping away from the pile of rubble as soon as his feet found purchase to do so.

Regrouping on the silent battleground and pausing only long enough to check for injuries, the weary travelers pushed on, departing from the ice cave before the dust had even settled.

* * *

Gale force winds tore through ragged ice formations jutting out towards the sky like so many spears, howling eerily all around Avalanche as they immerged from the dark underground tunnels into the bright noon sunlight. From the scenery around them, it was clear that they had made it inside the gigantic crater, the high icy walls of the dome shaped formation slopping down steeply to form a deep valley that seemed to span for miles.

As impressive as the crater was, it was nothing compared to the strange spectacle going on at the center of the valley. The familiar green glow of mako pits lit up the vast expanse below, powerful geezers propelling gallons of the stuff high into the air at regular intervals. A miasma of churning lifestream was slowly spiralling all around the confines of the crater, mirroring the motions of a tornado in slow motion.

Awed, the ragtag group stared down in wonder for a moment, trying to make sense of the sight before them. Cloud was quickest to rouse himself, his demeanor betraying just how restlessness he was to continue.

"Something fell from the sky and formed this crater a long time ago," said the Avalanche leader as he looked over to the others. "This must be the Planet's wound Ilfana had talked about in that old recording we found."

"So, that swirl of energy down there is the Planet trying to, like, heal itself?" asked Yuffie, looking unsure.

Cloud nodded gravely. "Must be." The blonde's attention shifted back to the spectacle below, frowning deeply. "If I had to take a guess, I'd have to say this is the reason why Sephiroth was after the Black Materia. If he gets his way, this scar will be nothing compared to what he has in store for the Planet."

"Well, what are we all waiting around for?" said Cid, impatiently flicking a cigarette stub into the abyss and lighting up a new one. "Let's go find the son-of-a-bitch and put a stop to all this fuckin' nonsense."

Nodding, Cloud walked over to the barely discernible path leading to the bottom of the crater. "If we hurry, we might still make it to Sephiroth before Shinra gets here," said the ex-Soldier as he took the lead down the steep path quickly but carefully, trusting his companions would follow suite.

The trek down the icy path was tricky at times, but it was still far easier than their earlier climb up the outer wall of the crater. It took far less time as well, the group making it to the bottom in just under an hour.

It quickly became obvious to them that Sephiroth was indeed in the area, the unmistakable marks of Masamune, the General's signature blade, easily recognisable on the bodies of several cloaked figures scattered along the path.

The landscape quickly morphed around them as they approached the centre of the crater, ice and snow giving way to jagged rocks, loose gravel and bubbling mako pits. The unstable terrain was uneven and crisscrossed with deep fissures every which way you looked, forcing the group to be extra cautious as to where they stepped.

An imposing fissure came into view as they circled around a big rock formation, their current path narrowing down significantly to form a natural bridge to the other side. They ventured carefully over the mako filled gorge, the serpentine path often interrupted by sizable gaps created by the passage of mako energized winds.

Carefully timing their jumps over the holes, they advanced steadily onwards towards a wider section about halfway across the mako pit. There, through the greenish haze, a few shadowy silhouettes slowly took form. The one that stood out the most was the unmistakable figure of Sephiroth, the skilled silver haired swordsman currently busy finishing off the last of the black cloaked individuals that had made it to the 'Reunion'.

"Sephiroth!" Cloud took off running the moment he spotted the General, all else forgotten.

"Cloud, wait up!" Tifa was sprinting after him before she had even finished speaking, a determined look etched on the martial artist's face as she strived to keep up with her childhood friend. The rest of the group followed after the two, readying their weapons on the go.

Cloud stopped a few steps away from his target, Buster sword held firmly in front of him. The others formed a semi-circle on either side of their leader, blocking off one of only two possible escape routes. "It ends here, Sephiroth!" said Cloud gravely, confidence rolling off the young man in waves. Sephiroth, who had up to this point kept his back turned to the group as he slaughtered the last of his mindless followers, half turned to meet Cloud's gaze, an amused smirk etched on his chiseled face as he casually flicked the excess blood off his sword.

"Such a good little Puppet…" Sephiroth chuckled darkly, seemingly amused by his cryptic greeting. He turned to face the group, although he seemed to have eyes only for Cloud. The deranged man brought up his weaponless hand up with deliberate slowness, smirking as he watched his blonde opponent tense up in response. "It _is _the end," he said, referring to Cloud's initial statement. "It's the end of this body's usefulness…" He snapped his leather clad fingers as he said this, his body suddenly losing all substance at that simple action.

Before anyone of Avalanche had anytime to respond, the green eyed man disappeared completely from view, a burst of malevolent energy flowing outwards from where he had stood to envelop the entire area. The choking miasma blocked out their senses and confused the entire group, even the robotic Cait Sith seemed affected on some level as the plush cat stumbled around. As much as it affected the others it completely floored Cloud, the blond kneeling with both hands clutched tightly on either side of his head, his sword lying forgotten on the ground beside him.

'_We must deliver the Black Materia to our Master…_' Sephiroth's disembodied voice seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere at once. '_Those of us who carry Jenova's cells and have heeded her call…_'

The General went silent, but his words seemed to echo eerily inside Vincent's head. The red clad man focused on his senses as best he could to try and fight the confusion, straining to keep his mind and body from being usurped by the opportunistic demons sharing his body. Despite his altered state of mind, the gunslinger could hear Cloud as he began to mutter a few steps away, the swordsman's words making little sense.

"Stop… Enough… I won't…" The Avalanche leader's voice sounded strained, almost as if it took the young man much effort to force the words out. For the next few moments all Vincent could hear were the sounds of heavy breathing coming from Cloud, and the confused whispers of the rest of Avalanche. When the blonde spoke up once more, his voice had lost its usual edge, sounding almost mechanical in its monotony.

"Our purpose, yes… _Master_…" Vincent could not be sure he understood that last word correctly, the mumbled whisper barely audible even for his ears.

A feeling of light-headedness washed over the gunslinger before he could truly analyse what was going on with Cloud, the suffocating energy left behind by Sephiroth disappearing so abruptly that it left Vincent feeling unbalanced, his brain playing catch-up as his senses were suddenly bombarded with external input once more.

"Oh shit!" A terrible roar followed Cid's exclamation. Before Vincent could make sense of the dark writhing mass now standing where Sephiroth had previously been, the stunned gunman found himself being forcefully pulled back by the still cursing pilot, the two narrowly missing being crushed by a giant tentacle, the slime covered appendage hitting the ground with a heavy thud.

Turning to his unexpected savior, Vincent nodded his head in gratitude.

"Thank y…"

"Save it for later Vincent," interrupted Cid in a clipped tone, the pilot's normally short temper clearly made worst by the current situation.

A battle cry announced Cloud's first assault on their new opponent, the ex-Soldier having re-claimed both his sword and his sanity remarkably fast considering his previous indisposition. Tifa and Barret joined in their leader's effort immediately, attacking the amorphous monster head on with physical attacks.

"Lightning!" A white bolt of electricity manifested itself out of thin air as Red activated the materia attached to his bangle, static electricity causing the sentient beast's red main to stand up on edge. With the coordination that comes from fighting as a team for so long, Cloud and the others were already out of the danger zone by the time the magic attack hit home. The stench of ozone and charred flesh permeated the air as thousands of volts of electricity coursed through the featureless tentacled monstrosity, its multiple limbs twitching uncontrollably in rhythmic spasms.

As the electricity wore off, the faceless creature leaned towards the group of fighters, seemingly focusing its attention on its last attacker. A strange crimson glow suddenly surrounded Red XIII, the feline's single amber eye going wide in surprise at first before shutting tightly in agony as the surrounding glow suddenly superheated, resulting in excruciating pain.

Gun blazing, Vincent charged forward towards his target, aiming for where a face would normally be. The creature jerked back as the large caliber bullets ripped through its mutated flesh and quickly brought up two tentacles towards its centre to use as shields. With is attention now shifted, the attack on Red XIII finally ceased, allowing time for Tifa to treat the four legged Avalanche member with a Cure materia.

As Vincent reached the strike zone of the monster, a large tentacle whipped down to strike the caped gunman. Having anticipated the attack, Vincent dodged to the side and jumped onto the appendage, using the rubbery tentacle like a spring board to summersault high into the air, still firing at the creature all the while.

The downward thrust of Vincent's feet on the tentacle pushed it directly into the path of Cloud's awaiting sword, the Avalanche leader making short work of the slithery member as his massive sword sliced clean through it. The dismembered tentacle writhed wildly on the dusty ground for a few seconds before melting away in a puddle of gunk.

Another tentacle which had been reaching towards the airborne Vincent quickly met a similar fate as the previous one, Yuffie's sharp edged Shuriken slicing through it like butter.

The gunslinger landed lightly atop the monster in a crouch, black blood sputtering all over him as he began to shoot point blank into what he presumed was the creature's head. An unseen tentacle knocked him off before he could do significant damage, sending him flying harshly to the ground.

Vincent quickly picked himself up, turning in time to witness Cloud plunge his Buster sword deeply into the monster's slimy core, eliciting a strange gurgled sound from the now mortally wounded being. A stream of black blood poured from the gaping wound, pooling in an expending puddle at Cloud's feet. The creature lurched away from its slayer as the swordsman pulled out his weapon, one last violent tremor travelling through its massive body before giving in to the pull of gravity, falling over the edge of the platform and disappearing into the glowing pool of mako.

Cloud bent down, noticing a glowing object in the already congealing mess of blood.

"Isn't that the Black Materia?" asked Yuffie as Cloud wiped the orb clean on his shirt. Cloud nodded in confirmation, extending his hand out so the others could view his find. "Alright! This rocks!" exclaimed the teenaged girl excitedly, pumping her fist in the air in victory.

"Sephiroth is somewhere up ahead," stated Cloud as he put away the Black Materia, the ex-Soldier primed up and ready to go. "We can catch up to him if we hurry…"

"Hey Cloud, wait!" Cait Sith waved his arms urgently as he ran ahead of the already departing blond. "I just intercepted a message from Shinra. They'll be arriving at the crater any minute now!"

The group's leader paused upon hearing the news, a frown marring his features as he contemplated the tight spot they were now in.

"We can't take the chance of getting cornered by Shinra and his troops while we're busy dealing with Sephiroth," said Cloud after a moment of reflection. "Tifa! Barret!" The two in question stepped forward to stand beside their leader as he called for them. "You two will be coming with me to face Sephiroth. The rest of you will wait here in case Shinra shows up."

Barret nodded and immediately stepped towards the path ahead, but Tifa lingered a moment longer next to Cloud, worry etched on her features.

"Maybe it's best if you leave the Black Materia with one of the guys staying behind," she suggested, pulling at one of her leather gloves anxiously. "You know, just in case something happens…" She trailed off, but Cloud clearly understood what she meant.

"You're right," he said, walking over to Cid to hand over the Black Materia. "Whatever happens, don't give this back to me," ordered Cloud as he relinquished the relic over to the gruff pilot. "I may end up getting controlled by Sephiroth like I was in the past, and the last thing I want is for him to get his hands on the Black Materia again because of me."

"Sure thing, pal," said Cid as he pocketed the small orb, patting the other man's shoulder in a reassuring gesture. "And don't worry 'bout Shinra. If that snotty corporate asswipe shows up, we'll be sure to send him and his goons packin'."

Content with the knowledge that his friends had his back, Cloud nodded to the pilot, smiling a little as he joined up with Barret and Tifa who were waiting for him. "Keep your PHS's handy, in case we need to get in touch," said Cloud as a final remark to the group remaining behind. With that said he took off running down the narrow path leading towards the far end of crevasse, his two current partners following closely behind him.

* * *

"How long did you say it was gonna take for Shinra to get here?" asked Yuffie as she chucked another flat rock into the mako pit, trying to find the optimal angle to ensure the maximum number of skips along the glowing green surface. So far her record had been twelve consecutive jumps, but she just knew she could do better.

Cait Sith, who had been trying to match the ninja at skipping rocks but had so far failed on every try, pulled his attention reluctantly away from the surprisingly entertaining activity and tilted his furry head back to look up at the young girl. "Beats me. As far as I know, they might already be in the crater," said the robot, shrugging his shoulders. "This place is so big, there's no telling where they could be. They might not even come this way at all."

"Should we not have seen a transport of sorts fly overhead if Shinra had indeed arrived?" asked Red XIII as he rose from where he'd been lying for the past quarter hour, stretching out his sore muscles delightfully slow before trotting over to the others.

"Not necessarily," answered Cid before Cait had a chance to do so, the pilot scrutinising the hazy fume filled sky overhead. "There's more than enough cover for even a decent sized aircraft to fly on by unnoticed. Hell, a whole fleet could fly by and we probably wouldn't have a goddamn clue."

Yuffie sighed as she threw one last rock out into the distance before moving over to the path Cloud and the others had disappeared off to earlier. "Do you think maybe we should call them?" The girl took out her PHS without waiting for an answer from any of the others present, hitting one of the pre-set speed dials. "I mean, we can't really wait all day in the middle of this stinking mako pit for Shinra to _maybe _show up. We might as well make ourselves actually useful by helping the others fight Sephiroth."

The ninja fidgeted impatiently as she waited for someone to pick up on the other end of her phone, but as the seconds stretched on without an answer, worry began to creep on her features. Finally, after having allowed it to ring for far longer than should be necessary, she hung up. "Tifa's not answering… Maybe I should try Cloud's PHS…"

A strange foreboding feeling washed over Vincent suddenly, distracting him from Yuffie's current dilemma. Before he could even think to warn any of the others, he blacked out.

* * *

Consciousness returned to the downed gunslinger, his world at first limited to a field of grey blotches and an annoying buzzing in his ears. As his senses readjusted, it became clear that Vincent hadn't been the only victim of this strange faint spell, the moans of his comrades indicating they were only now regaining consciousness themselves.

Blinking a few times to force the world into focus, Vincent got up and inspected his surroundings. Immediately he noticed one of the others had gone missing.

Ooh… My head…" Vincent walked over to Yuffie upon hearing her complaint, lending the groggy girl a helping hand as she clumsily regained her feet. "Leviathan… If this is what it feels like to have a hangover, I'm never getting drunk…"

"Cid is missing," stated Vincent once he was certain Yuffie could stand on her own. This immediately caught everyone's attention, Red XIII and Cait Sith having already recovered from their malaise by then.

"Where could he have gone?" inquired Cait, the mechanical cat scratching his head as he looked around, clearly puzzled by this turn of event.

"I've picked up his scent," said Red XIII as he quickly moved with his nose to the ground in the same direction Cloud, Tifa and Barret had gone. "He must have left to join Cloud and the others."

"I don't have a good feeling about this…" said Yuffie nervously, rubbing her arms as if to comfort herself.

Vincent did not respond to Yuffie's comment, but he couldn't help but agree with her sentiment. The ex-Turk refused to believe that Cid would leave without warning, especially not if it meant leaving the rest of them while they were unconscious and vulnerable. The entire situation screamed of foul play, and he had a feeling he knew what was going on.

"We have to hurry and catch up to Cid before he reaches the others," said Vincent as he walked briskly towards the path ahead, reloading his gun at the same time as he had failed to do so after the fight earlier. Yuffie jogged up beside him. "What's going on, Vince?" asked the teenager, worry seeping into her voice.

"Something happened while we were unconscious that tricked Cid into pursuing Cloud and the others. I can think of only one reason as to why he would be singled out like this…"

"Cid had been trusted with the Black Materia!" said Red XIII with urgency as he looked back towards the caped warrior, realising now what it was Vincent suspected.

Vincent nodded, confirming Red's fear. "Cid almost certainly doesn't realise it, but he's about to personally deliver the Black Materia directly into Sephiroth's eager hands."

Cait Sith began pacing back and forth, shaking his head in disbelief. "Oh, this is bad… This is very ba-_Woah_!" "No time for dilly-dallying, tin man!" Before he knew what had happened, Cait found himself being hauled up by Yuffie as she ran past him, the girl stuffing the plush under one arm as she sprinted down the path, following Red XIII who had taken the lead.

Vincent chose to trail behind the group with his gun at the ready, keen red eyes darting all around for signs of danger. He hoped they would be able to catch up to the pilot in order to stop him, but deep down he knew it might already be too late.

It didn't take very long for the first sign that something had gone wrong to manifest. A constant tremor shook the ground beneath their feet as Avalanche advanced quickly through a maze of mako crystals, green mist jutting up all around them from newly formed crevices. As they passed by a huge wall of mako and ice, a gigantic eye blinked open on the other side of the translucent barrier, startling the group somewhat but not enough to slow their pursuit.

"What was that?!" asked a wide eyed Yuffie as she looked over her shoulder towards the oddity, the distracted girl just barely missing running into a large crystal were it not for Cait Sith warning her at the last moment.

"The Weapons are waking up," answered Vincent as he accelerated past the others, the urgency of the situation only now truly registering with the ex-Turk. If the Weapons had been roused, it meant Sephiroth was now in possession of the Black Materia and would be summoning Meteor any moment now. The fate of the Planet and all that inhabit it was being played out somewhere up ahead, and Vincent would be damned if he didn't at least try to do something about it.

"Vincent, wait up!" The gunslinger ignored the cries at his back as he quickened his pace, disappearing from view of the group as he turned a bend. The scenery blurred past the enhanced gunman as he pushed his body to the very limit of its endurance, the edge of his vision bleeding red as his demons reacted to both his turbulent state of mind and the cataclysmic events going on at the centre of the crater. The tremors were quickly growing in intensity the further he went, forcing the agile gunslinger to dodge falling debris and jump over widening gaps.

He finally reached the dead centre of the crater, the large open area surrounded on all sides by tall glowing mako crystals, some of which were crisscrossing overhead in random patterns. The far end of the clearing was almost completely occupied by an imposing airship the likes of which Vincent had never seen before, but considering what was happening at the very centre of the clearing, he barely even noticed it.

The gunslinger was still some distance away from the scene but he could already recognise many of the people standing around in the clearing. Noticeably missing from the area were Cloud and Sephiroth, but Vincent knew they had to be somewhere close by. Everyone present was currently looking up towards the crisscrossing arches overhead, seemingly too transfixed by something up there to notice that the area was quickly breaking apart all around them. Vincent tried to follow their line of view but could not see anything of interest from his current position.

Of the people he recognised up ahead, Cid was the standing the closest with his back to him, the pilot standing separate from the rest of the gathered crowd. Tifa and Barret were standing at the opposite end of the area, near the aircraft. In between Cid and the two other Avalanche members present stood President Shinra along with a woman Vincent didn't recognise, a few armed soldiers and one lone scientist that he would recognise even in the depths of hell.

Vincent forgot all about his reasons for being there as his attention fixated on the lanky form of the detestable Hojo, the scrawny scientist displaying the same callous smirk that Vincent remembered so well from years long passed.

Hatred and rage clouded his mind as he made a beeline for his arch nemesis, the gunslinger aware that his consciousness was quickly being usurped by one of his demons but not caring in the least at the moment. The demon gleefully filled its host's mind with thoughts of torture and pain to be inflicted on the good doctor, causing Vincent to smile wickedly as his usurpers blood filled fantasies became his own.

He was on the verge of transforming, his body completely encased in a tell-tail red glow as he rushed past Cid when a powerful wave of brilliant white energy from above knocked him back, winding him.

"Everyone in the airship, _now_! We need to evacuate the area!" His bloodlust having lessened temporarily, Vincent was able to focus enough to recognise the President's voice as he bellowed over the chaos. Other voices filtered through, but Tifa's and Barret's were the most clear.

"What about Cloud?" he heard the martial artist ask in a panicked, high pitched voice. "We can't just leave him up there with Sephiroth!"

"Leave 'em!" yelled Barret. "Ain't nothing we can do for him now!"

Vincent gazed up at the web of crystal spires, finally noticing for the first time a very large chunk of crystallised mako hanging overhead with the sleeping form of Sephiroth imprisoned inside. Cloud was floating limply in midair near the General's location, his normally vibrant blue eyes now dull and empty, devoid of their normal spark.

"Move your ass, Vincent!" said Cid as he scrambled to get up from under the other man, the pilot having somehow ended up beneath Vincent following the shockwave. "This place is about to blow its top, we need to fuckin' go!"

The blond shrunk back as a pair of glowing, fiery eyes landed on him, Cid only now realising how close his partner was to losing all control. His eyes went wide with panic as the demonic man suddenly snarled at him, fangs bared. "Hey now…" said the pilot in what he hoped was an appeasing voice. "We're on the same team, remember?"

"This is marvelous, simply marvelous! All my theories about the Jenova Reunion, all my years of hard work finally coming to fruition!" Vincent's head snapped back towards the nearby scene upon hearing Hojo's voice, Cid now completely forgotten. The pilot was suddenly freed from his compromising position as Vincent took off, the unstable gunslinger once again focused solely on reaching his target.

The ground beneath Vincent's feet suddenly began to slant forward, the area ahead of him quickly caving in to form a yawning chasm. On the other side of the spreading gap, Shinra and his posse were scrambling to the airship, the engines of the flying apparatus already warming up for take-off. President Shinra paused just as he was about to board, looking over to the three stragglers left nearby.

"Get in if you want to live!" he yelled out towards Tifa and Barret, the two Avalanche members hesitating at first, but upon realising the airship was their only chance at salvation, they rushed up the ramp and disappeared inside the ship. Two soldiers were sent to retrieve Hojo, the scientist too engrossed by the outcome of his experiment to realise it was time to go.

Vincent sped up as he realised he was about to lose his chance at exacting his revenge upon his nemesis, running along the enlarging fissure in order to gain enough momentum to jump across. Just as he was about to leap, a desperate cry for help behind him caused him to skid to a stop.

Looking back, Vincent first saw Red XIII and Cait Sith standing near the entrance he'd entered through earlier, but quickly disregarded the two as he realised Yuffie was slowly being dragged forward on her stomach towards a newly opened crevice, desperately trying to keep a hold of the much heavier Cid as he dangled over the deep hole.

Still fueled by his demon's bloodlust and his own desire for vengeance, Vincent did not immediately react, his addled mind fighting to regain full control of his body. A frightened high pitched cry from Yuffie seemed to chock him back to his senses, his mind sharpening to an edge all at once as the demons reluctantly relinquished their hold over him.

Vincent rushed to action, sprinting as quickly as he could towards his two endangered teammates. He reached the crevice just as the ground beneath Yuffie gave way, the terrified duo screaming as the pull of gravity sent them both careening into a free fall. Vincent plunged head first after the two without hesitation, the same red glow as earlier once more enveloping his form as his crimson cape twisted all around him as he tried to recapture the strange power that had allowed him limited flight a few days prior.

He caught up to Yuffie almost immediately, grabbing a hold of her extended arm with his human hand and twisting sharply in midair, effectively inverting the girl's momentum and sending her flying back towards the opening of the fissure. Looking up only briefly to assure himself she had made it over the edge, Vincent allowed his mind to go blank in order to complete his transformation, his lithe form morphing into a shapeless red haze as it had once before. He finally made contact with Cid after a few seconds of free falling, trapping the panicked pilot into the amorphous folds of his cloak like form.

With a great expenditure of energy Vincent flew as quickly as he could back up towards the top of the crevice, managing to maintain his unstable form long enough to get both himself and his unwilling passenger to safety on firm ground. Exhausted, the spent gunslinger wanted nothing more than to lie down on the cold hard ground and rest for a while, but he knew that was a luxury he could not afford.

The others were already rushing towards the path leading out of the area, but Vincent took one last look back to where he'd last seen Hojo to find that the scientist had already vacated the area. Looking up he saw the airship as it lifted out towards the lip of the crater, strong gusts of Lifestream striking violently at the escaping machine. Vincent caught a quick glimpse of Cloud and the entrapped Sephiroth as he gazed overhead, but falling crystals and erupting geysers of mako quickly obstructed them from view.

Realising there was nothing more he could do here, Vincent fled after the others, holding little hope that any of them would make it out alive as the world collapsed around them.

* * *

**Author's note: **_I'm back, baby! Yeah okay I know it's been a very long time since I've updated, but hey, at least I had a good excuse. ;-)_

_I can't write as quickly as I used to since I barely have any free time, but so long as I don't encounter a writer's block, I think I should be able to manage a new chapter in about a month or so. It's already planned out, so that should help. In the meantime, I hope you all enjoy this extra-long chapter! _


	19. Chapter 19

**Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII. Final Fantasy 7, the storyline and its characters belong solely to Square-Enix.**

**Chapter 19**

"_And as we've been reporting for the past few hours now, Shinra has announced this morning that the parties responsible for the events of the past week, namely the appearance of Meteor over our skies as well as the release of the entities known as Weapons all across Gaia, are currently being detained and will be held accountable for their actions. _

_Official reports have indicated that the duo in question are in fact high ranking members of the infamous group of terrorists known as Avalanche, wanted for acts of terrorism committed over the past year such as the sabotage of Mako reactors 1 and 5, as well as the tragic fall of the upper plate from Sector 7 which caused the loss of many, many innocent lives._

_While we are still waiting just outside the Shinra Tower for confirmation, rumors have led us to believe that the two culprits will in fact be publicly executed later this week in a yet to be disclosed location. We at Channel 5 will make it our duty to…" _

"For fuck's sake, would you shut that goddamn TV off already?" yelled a frustrated Cid as he threw an empty soda can at the glowing screen, a few drops of orange flavored soda smearing over the overly joyous face of the Channel 5 female reporter. "I swear if I have to hear that woman spew those god-awful lies one more goddamn time, I'm going to lose it!"

"Oh fine!" said Yuffie as she turned the television off, glaring unhappily at the blond lounging on the furthest bed in the room. "Geez, you're such a grump this morning…"

Cid quickly leaned forward towards the girl and opened his mouth as if to say something, seemed to reconsider for a moment and instead decided to just leaned back against the head rest once more, fuming silently.

"Give the guy a break, lass," said Cait from his vantage point atop the only dresser in the sparsely furnished room. "Things haven't exactly been rosy for anyone these past few days; you can't blame the man for feeling a little blue." Cid cocked an eyebrow at the Shinra spy, surprised by Cait's defense of him.

"Yeah, I know…" admitted the young girl in a tired voice. She sat on the floor cross-legged next to Red XIII, absentmindedly stroking his mane. "I guess we're all just a little grumpy from being cooped up in this tiny room for the past two days…"

The five of them had by some miracle escaped the destruction and chaos in the northern crater almost a week ago, just barely making it out of the crater in time to avoid being trapped inside Sephiroth's barrier. As they escaped the area, they had witnessed the sudden appearance of Meteor overhead, the fiery red object looming ominously over the darkening skies. The mighty Weapons had been released from the crater shortly after, the titanesque creatures shooting through the sky like comets to scatter all across the world.

Injured and exhausted, it had taken the remaining Avalanche members three days to leave the Northern continent, only stopping a few brief hours at Icicle Inn to rest. Cait Sith had informed them of Barret and Tifa's status as political prisoners that night, urging them to travel back to Midgar where he thought the duo were being kept. Using the Tiny Bronco to escape the frozen continent, they had travelled first to Kalm and then to Midgar, using the cover of night to enter the industrial city undetected. Having managed to scrape up just enough money for a cheap motel room in the Slums, the group had been hiding out ever since, waiting for an opportunity to rescue their captive teammates.

"Still no news as to their whereabouts?" enquired Vincent from his vigil near the window, looking over to Cait briefly as he asked before returning his attention to the window. A sliver of gloomy light entered the shadowy room as the ex-Turk discreetly moved aside the heavy blinds for the umpteenth time that morning, keen red eyes scrutinising the area outside for any signs of trouble outside.

"Not yet, but Rufus just sent a message to all the higher ups for an emergency meeting in less than an hour," said Cait, the Shinra employee's familiar use of President Shinra's first name not lost on the quick minded gunslinger. "There's also a bunch of crewmen being called in to prep the airship at the base, so I'm assuming something big is happening today. As soon as I know anything more, I'll let you guys know."

"Should we be getting ready?" asked Yuffie as she got back up, doing a full body stretch with her arms over her head while balancing on her tippy toes, yawning loudly as she did so. "You know, in case we need to get going in a hurry?"

"Get ready _how _exactly? It's not like we got much packin' to do," reminded Cid morosely, pointing to the one meagrely stocked backpack they had managed to salvage from their latest misadventure.

Resting her hands on her slim haunches, the youngest amongst the group resisted the urge to stick out her tongue at the aggravating spearman. "Alright, mister smarty pants," said the girl with a hint of sarcasm as she walked to the door, grabbing a thick cloak hanging from a hook on the back of it. "You can just stay there and sulk all day if that's what you want, I'm fine with that, but don't come crying to me when you go hungry later today."

"You're going out?" asked RedXIII.

"Yeah, I'm gonna grab some breakfast for everyone," answered Yuffie as she wrapped the concealing cloak around her small frame, pulling the hood over her head to better hide her features. "Any special requests?" she asked to the group, one hand already wrapped around the door handle as she prepared to leave.

"We ain't got any money left," reminded Cid as he shifted to sit on the edge of the bed, running one hand through his dishevelled blond locks.

"Who said anything about money?" said the ninja, winking. Deciding she had waited long enough for a response from the others, she swung the door open and slipped out into the foul smelling hallway. "I won't be long, guys!" With those parting words she quietly closed the door behind her, the expert thief making no noise as she snuck down the hallway towards the exit.

Inside the room, the four men left behind stared at the closed door quietly for a moment. Cid suddenly sprang up from the bed after a few seconds and ran to the door, opening it just wide enough to stick his head through it.

"Hey Yuffie!" he called out to the teenager at the end of the corridor, watching as she stopped and turned momentarily to look back at him. "Grab me some smokes, will ya?"

Smiling, Yuffie rose up her hand in an 'Okay' gesture before turning to leave.

"Oh and some fuckin' tea, too!" yelled Cid as an afterthought to the girl as she disappeared down another hallway. "I ain't drinkin' one more goddamn drop of that disgusting excuse for a beverage they call coffee down in this stinkin' hellhole!"

* * *

Hours after Yuffie had returned from her venture and everyone minus Cait and Vincent had eaten their fill of pilfered food, Cait Sith finally managed to get the information they had been waiting around for, namely Tifa and Barret's current location. Unfortunately, their missing companions weren't being kept in Midgar as they had hoped, but were instead being held prisoner miles away in Junon's military base. To make matters worse, they were scheduled to be executed on live television the very next day, giving their would-be rescuers very little time to reach their location and plan a breakout.

Upon learning that President Shinra was planning on using the very same aircraft they had seen in the crater a week prior in order to attend the execution in person, Cid beamed up, quickly suggesting they travel as stowaways onboard the ship. The pilot explained how he knew most of the crew from his days back in the Space Program and was confident his loyal ex-crewmen would be more than willing to help their beloved 'Captain', regardless of whatever ties they might have to the Shinra Company.

Pleased with this new development in their favor, the group quickly gathered up their meagre possessions and abandoned their hideout, traveling to the upper plate via a passenger train. They didn't bother trying to hide their identities on their way to the airship, counting instead on Cait Sith hacking the security checkpoints during the train ride as well as his inside knowledge of which routes would be patrolled by soldiers once they made it to the upper plate.

They managed to make it all the way to an abandoned warehouse adjacent to the base without incident, but their progress stalled from there. The area was crawling with Soldiers and Turks, security having apparently been tightened in and around the small airbase in anticipation of the President's arrival. From one of the many grimy bay windows inside the decrepit warehouse, the ragtag team of rebels could clearly see the activities going on inside the military complex next door.

The airship they meant to board could be seen on one of the landing areas near the middle of the base, crewmen working feverishly fast to finish up the final preparations before the arrival of the higher ups. Numerous crates had been piled up outside the ship's storage area, the heavy wooden boxes awaiting their turn to be loaded onboard as one by one they were dragged up a heavy metal ramp into the cargo hold by the valiant crewmembers. Forklifts kept bringing out more crates from a nearby hangar, depositing them next to the pile before returning to fetch some more.

"Any ideas?" whispered Cid as he crouched beneath the dirt smudged window, watching as the others followed his example and lowered themselves out of view.

"We could try creating a distraction," suggested Red XIII as he looked from one of his companion's to the other, his fiery tail twitching slowly back and forth.

"Like an explosion or something?" asked Cait Sith, the plush jumping up onto the window ledge to look outside. "I'm pretty sure they keep explosives in that warehouse over there," he said, pointing out a nearby building. "I think I'm small enough that nobody would notice if I snuck in to get a bomb. We could just set up a small delayed detonation on the other side of the base in order to get everyone away from the ship."

"Hey that's a great idea!" said Yuffie, beaming. "We could totally make a run for the airship while everyone else is busy dealing with the mayhem."

"I don't advise going through with this plan," interjected Vincent, cutting in before anyone else could add anything.

"What? Why not?" asked Yuffie, stomped as to why Vincent would disagree with what seemed like a fool proof plan.

"An explosion might succeed in distracting the Soldiers and crew away from the ship, but the Turks won't fall for it." The gunslinger shifted as he explained this, rising just enough from his crouched position to monitor the comings and goings on the base. "Turks are made more keenly aware than most when it comes to tricks and ruses because of their particular line of work. They won't fail to recognise the explosion for what it is – a diversion – and will act accordingly."

"Bummer…" said Yuffie in a dejected tone, clearly disappointed. "I was so sure it was going to work…"

"Don't suppose anyone else has any other ideas on how to make it past all those fuckin' goons out there?" Cid lid up a fresh cigarette as he spoke, the man clearly stressed out by the situation at hand. "I mean, it's not like we can fly over their heads unnoticed and just climb onboard the damn ship."

"Oh! Oh!" Cait suddenly becoming very animated upon hearing the pilot's last remark, the plush grinning excitedly as he turned towards the group. "Maybe we can't fly over their heads," he said as he jumped down from the windowsill, quickly scurrying away from his companions while waving for them to follow. "But what about crawling under their feet?"

The quartet exchanged quizzical stares before setting off to follow their small ally.

"When Midgar's upper plate was first built, a lot of areas became prone to flooding whenever it rained because of poor drainage, including this one." Cait Sith was still running ahead of the group as he began his explanation, his head bobbing from side to side as if searching for something. "That problem's mostly fixed now, but at the time a lot of the buildings ended up being built with large drains inside that could be opened when needed. Because they lead directly to the sewers, these drains are usually kept blocked off and well concealed, but Shinra just happens to have the blueprints for nearly every building in Midgar…"

The furry robot slowed down significantly as he approached some disused machinery near the centre of the cluttered room, bending to look in the area underneath one rusty machine. "Aha!" exclaimed Cait as he suddenly crawled into the cubby space, leaving trails of disturbed dust and dirt on the concrete floor as he went. "Found it!"

Red XIII crawled halfway in to take a look, but quickly backed out of the tight space when he realised he was bound to get stuck if he went any further. The feline looked up towards his human companions, his red fur now coated in a thin layer of dust. "There is a large metal grate under there," confirmed Red as he shook out his mane, the ensuing cloud of dust causing him to sneeze a few times before he continued speaking. "If we can manage to move this equipment, we should be able to reach it."

Cait reappeared out of the hole just as Vincent, Cid and Yuffie lined up alongside the large machine, the plush moving a few steps away with Red to cheer from the sidelines.

"On three," said Vincent as he leaned forward with both hands against the hard metal surface, his two companions taking a similar stance on either side of him. "One… Two…"

"Three!" yelled out Cid with a grunt. All three pushed forward in a synchronised fashion, the strain from the exerting task showing on all their features as they attempted to push the heavy obstacle out of their path. For the first few seconds nothing seemed to happen, but then finally a deep rumble started to reverberate throughout the large room as the steel contraption began to slowly move forward. Its inertia now overcome, the machine quickly gained momentum as the Avalanche trio continued their steady advance, until finally the metal grate beneath it was exposed completely.

Grabbing the edge of the rectangular manhole with his mechanical hand, Vincent lifted the heavy grate from its base and carefully dragged it off to the side, revealing a tunnel that led down into darkness. The gunslinger quickly lifted his human hand to the edge of his high collar, pulling the thick fabric over his nose in a vain attempt to try and filter out the overwhelming smell of decay that suddenly drifted up.

"Oh Leviathan… What is that _smell_?!" asked a gagging Yuffie as she began to turn a shade of green, her voice muffled by her attempts at blocking out the smell with both hands in front of her nose and mouth.

"Take a wild guess," said Cid wryly as he stepped to the edge of the rectangular hole, all the while pinching his nose.

Just barely managing to keep down her breakfast, Yuffie stepped in between Cid and Vincent, looking down into the tunnel with complete disgust. "Please tell me we're not _really_ planning on going down into that cesspool, right?"

"We sure are, lass!" said Cait Sith in an overbearingly happy voice as he strutted forward towards the entrance, the plush quickly lowering himself down into the tunnel through the use of steel rungs arranged on one side to form a ladder. "_Hey guys, there's a sidewalk down here_!" echoed Cait's voice from the darkness below.

"Thank fuckin' god", muttered Cid as he took his turn down the ladder. "Wasn't looking forward to waddling around knee deep in shit…"

Red XIII walked over to Vincent and sat next to the gunslinger, looking down into the manhole briefly before his golden eye settled on the dark man. "Would you be so kind as to lower me down so that I can grab onto the first rungs?" asked the cat in a polite manner. Vincent nodded curtly, the tall man lowering himself to his four legged ally's level. Grabbing hold of Red with one arm wrapped around his chest and the other under his hind legs, the gunman carefully lowered the large feline down the hole, waiting until the other had wound his front paws securely into the looped bars and his hind legs were resting on a lower rung before letting go completely.

"Thank you, friend," said a gracious Red XIII to the gunslinger still hovering over the entrance. Looking down, Red slowly made his way down one careful step at a time, managing to make it all the way to the bottom without slipping once.

Vincent then looked over to Yuffie, the only one other than himself still waiting around inside the decrepit building. Her eyes went saucer wide when she realised he was waiting on her to take her turn down the tunnel.

"No! No way! I am _not _going down in that stink fest," said the feisty teenager as she waved both hands in front of her dismissively, taking a few steps away from the hole and the stoic gunslinger standing next to it.

"We don't have time to argue over this, Yuffie," said Vincent with a bit more irritation laced in voice than unusual, the last few days having worn thin the gunman's usual patience.

"You can go with the others if you like; I'll just find my own way inside the base with my awesome ninja skills!" Yuffie slashed at the empty air in front of her to emphasise her statement, finishing off her imaginary opponent with an impressive kick. "Don't be surprised if you get to the airship and I'm already there waiting around for you slowpokes to arrive!" boasted the girl as she winked at her companion, grinning.

"Security is too tight, you won't make it," remarked the gunslinger.

"Well, we'll just see who's right!" replied Yuffie challengingly, her smile having now vanished to make room for an unhappy scowl.

"_Just drag her sorry ass down here already before I come up and do it myself, Vincent_!" yelled Cid, the pilot's voice echoing hollowly from the dark tunnel below. Frowning at the girl's childish antics, Vincent took a step in her direction, intent on doing just that if need be.

Seeing the dead serious expression on the ex-Turk's face and finally realising she had no chance of winning this round, Yuffie huffed, crossing her arms in front of her as she walked over to the manhole. "Fine, I'm coming…"

Vincent watched as Yuffie jumped feet first into the tunnel, the young ninja agilely grabbing onto the metal rungs about midway down before continuing down the rest of the ladder in a more conventional manner.

Once he was certain she was safely down, he lowered himself quickly down the rectangular passageway, pausing momentarily to grab hold of the nearby manhole cover and dragging the heavy cover back into place before continuing on his way, leaving only a few footsteps and drag marks in the dusty warehouse to account for their passage there.

* * *

The remaining members of Avalanche managed to make it onto the airbase without too much fuss, sneaking into the hangar nearest to the airship undetected through a large drain situated at the back of the building. From there they snuck up to the stacks of crates marked to be loaded onto the ship, waiting until the staff were busy outside so they could empty out two of the larger crates, hiding the contents out of sight so as not to arouse suspicion. They concealed themselves inside the now empty boxes, Cid and Red XIII in the first crate while Vincent, Cait Sith and Yuffie were hidden away in the second one.

There was a long moment during which nothing seemed to happen, but just when Vincent was beginning to suspect their plan might not work after all, a thud followed by a shift in the crate's position indicated that they were finally being moved outside the hangar.

There was a slight pause, followed by a violent shift in the planes of orientation as the crate they were boxed in was unexpectedly moved at an angle, causing Yuffie to take a nasty tumble onto Vincent and Cait inside the cramped space. The girl cried out in surprise but was quickly silenced by Vincent, the gunslinger clamping his leather clad hand tightly over the girl's mouth.

"_Did you hear something_?" said a male voice outside the box.

"_Like what_?" asked a second, older sounding gentleman.

"_I think I heard a voice."_

The trio inside the box held their breaths as the men carrying the crate paused momentarily, the trapped fighters silently reaching for their respective weapons in anticipation of their impending discovery. Finally after a tense moment, the second man spoke up again.

"_Frank, I swear you need to get your ears checked; I don't hear diddly-squat_."

And with that the shuffling of the crate resumed, easing some of the tension felt by the weary trio inside. The crate's movements ceased completely soon after as it was deposited inside the ship's cargo area, but the group didn't allow themselves to relax just yet.

After waiting in complete silence for what felt like hours, the distinct hum of the ships engines warming up began to fill up the silence. The hum was quickly replaced by a deep rumble as the powerful engines fought against gravity's hold. The group were violently jerked around inside their tiny enclosure as the airship struggled at first to take off, until finally it managed to gain enough lift and quickly stabilised, smoothly ascending to the proper altitude before orienting itself towards Junon.

"Think it's safe to come out yet?" whispered Yuffie just loud enough to be heard over the ambient noise of the ship.

Hoping to take a peak outside, Vincent pushed up against the crate's wooden lid using one hand, but it wouldn't budge. He shifted as best he could in their cramped quarters, trying to get in a position that allowed for better leverage, until he finally settled on a semi-crouched position. With his upper back and both hands flush against the cover, he pushed up as hard as he could with his legs until the stubborn lid began to inch open on one end. Something heavy was heard sliding off the wooden surface followed by a loud crash. The previous resistance suddenly gone, Vincent unintentionally sent the now much lighter wooden lid flying a few meters away, the off balance gunslinger nearly stumbling out of the crate himself were it not for his quick reflexes.

Berating himself for his carelessness, Vincent first gazed at what remained of the half-crushed crate which had obviously been stacked over theirs, skimmed over the supplies which had been strewn all around as a result of the incident before looking over to his two companions, both of which were sporting incredulous looks on their faces as they stared back at him.

The sound of approaching footsteps redirected the group's attention towards the other of the cargo area. Still semi crouched half in and half out of the crate, Vincent froze with his gun at the ready, expecting to see soldiers arriving to investigate the ruckus he'd caused. Only it wasn't soldiers that came stumbling out from behind the stacks of supplies, but rather two very familiar individuals. Cid and Red XIII looked both a bit disheveled and groggy from their stay inside their respective crate, but they otherwise seemed well off as they ran towards them.

"Told ya it had to be them making that ungodly amount of noise," said Cid as he approached the three still lounging inside the opened crate, the pilot sporting a tense smile as he spied the supplies Vincent had unwittingly destroyed. "We're goddamn lucky that this airship was designed to insulate against noise; otherwise we'd have a serious shit storm to deal with right about now."

"So, what's the plan now that we've made it onboard?" asked Cait as he hopped up to grab the rim of the crate, swinging over the side and onto the hard metal floor.

"Yeah Cid," inquired Yuffie as she and Vincent both exited the confines of the crate, the girl looking a little green as she held one hand over her stomach. "Didn't you say you knew the guys working on this ship? Are you gonna get them to plan a mutiny or something?"

The aforementioned pilot scratched his chin musingly, little puffs of white smoke drifting off from the lit cigarette hanging at the side of his mouth. "Well," he said after a moment, "as tempting as that sound, I don't think planning a mutiny while we're in midair is the best approach, to be honest. I think we should just lay low for now and try to figure out how the fuck we're supposed to free Barret and Tifa when we get to Junon."

"How long do you expect it will take for us to reach our destination?" asked Vincent somewhat distractedly as he walked slowly through the rows of supplies, stopping at regular intervals to carefully read the manifests stapled on each of the crate.

"Depends a whole lot on if the goddamn weather cooperates or not, but I'd say maybe four – five hours tops." Cid's steely blue gaze followed the gunman's progress around the room with interest for about half a minute before the blond finally gave in to his curiosity. "The hell are you lookin' around for in those boxes?" asked the pilot as he walked over to the gunslinger, taking a look at the crate the dark haired man was currently scrutinising.

"A plan," answered Vincent simply as he pointed to the paper attached to the crate in front of them, the list consisting of only two small words typed in all capital letters: 'SHINRA UNIFORMS'.

* * *

Scarlet carefully checked her reflection in the one way mirror, tucking back a strand of unruly strawberry blond hair back into her sophisticated hairdo with a well-manicured finger. She briefly debated over her choice of crimson red lipstick being appropriate or not for an official broadcast, but seeing just how fabulous it made her look she couldn't help but think she'd made the right choice. After all, it wouldn't do for the head of Shinra's 'Department of Weapons Development' to look anything less than perfect on national television, now would it?

Her rouge painted lips quirked into a mocking smile as she glanced towards the reflection of the two troublesome prisoners tied up securely a short distance behind her in the small interrogation room. The two pests just couldn't seem to appreciate this momentous day as much as she did, which was such a shame. Honestly, how many people in history could boast that their well-deserved execution would be seen live by thousands, if not millions of people all over Gaia?

"My, my, such gloomy expressions you both have," said Scarlet as she turned to face her two captives, gliding her hands over her red cocktail dress as if to smooth out a few wrinkles, but in truth it was mostly a vie for attention from the men in the room. While it didn't seem to have any effect on that stubborn buffoon from Avalanche, she could still take pleasure in the fact that the two soldiers on each side of the door were visibly squirming as they watched her not so subtle display.

"The two of you should be grateful we're not just going to let you die in a dark hole somewhere, considering the amount of trouble you've caused the Shinra Company so far," said Scarlet as she approached the two prisoners. "The way I see it, you get to have one last moment of fame and glory, and Shinra gets to save face by using you both as scapegoats. It's a win-win situation, really."

"Shinra's gone completely batshit insane if he thinks anyone would fall for those fuckin' lies…" muttered Barret, the black gunner seething over the out of hands situation he and Tifa were currently stuck in but helpless to do anything about it.

"Kya ha ha!" Their stiletto wearing jailer threw back her head as she laughed, bemused by the large man's naivety. "Clearly you have no idea how the world works. People are nothing but gullible sheep that look upon us for leadership. So long as they have someone to blame for what's going on, they'll be more than happy to let the Shinra Company do whatever it wants like always."

The Shinra executive glanced over to the clock hanging over the door, noting there were due to appear in the conference room in just over 10 minutes. She snapped her fingers at the two guards, who immediately rushed over to flank the prisoners. "Hurry up now! We wouldn't want you to be late for you appointment." She laughed again, prompting an angry glare from Tifa.

"Oh come now," chastised Scarlet as she walked over to the other woman. "There's no need to put on such an ugly face on my account." The blonde feigned a hurt expression as she stopped just in front of the female prisoner, splaying one hand over her chest. "Oh how silly of me! That's just how you naturally look. So sorry."

"Shut your whore mouth, you cold-blooded corporate snake," spat out Tifa, lashing out verbally at her tormentor since she couldn't do so physically. Besides her, Barret smiled cockily.

Her mood now soured, Scarlet scowled bitterly. "I'm really going to enjoy watching you slowly choke to death in my specially designed gas chamber, you little bitch!" She shoved the bound woman towards the door. "Get going, the both of you!"

As they passed the threshold into the brightly lit corridor, one more soldier added himself to their numbers, the newcomers following a few paces behind Scarlet to serve as her personal guard.

The corporate woman rolled her eyes upon seeing the man's poorly concealed prosthetic left arm. A bulge could be seen from the elbow down underneath his sleeve, and the standard issued glove he'd been forced to wear over the mechanical limb had to have the tip of the fingers removed to allow space for the too long golden fingertips. Why Heidegger had allowed this atrocity to happen instead of having a tailor made uniform issued to this unfortunate soul was beyond her. It seems that the Head of Shinra's military was even more incompetent than she had previously suspected.

The group sailed through the maze of identical looking corridors in a silent and orderly fashion, making it to the conference room in a nick of time. About a dozen or so reporters and cameramen were present in the room as they arrived, as well as many of Shinra's higher ups. President Shinra was absent at the moment, but would probably show up a little later. A few soldiers were standing along the walls as well as near the podium, prepared to intervene at the first sign of trouble.

No sooner had Scarlet and her guest of honors crossed the door, they found themselves mobbed by the news crew, flashes blinding them as microphones and cameras were rudely shoved in their faces. The soldiers present immediately began doing some crowd control, roughly wresting the media away to allow the group passage to the front of the room unhindered.

Scarlet took the podium while Tifa and Barret were forced to stand on the stage behind her with soldiers on either side of them. The chaotic crowd calmed noticeably as the Shinra representative held both hands up, beaconing silence. Satisfied she had their undivided attention, the sharply dressed blonde grabbed hold of the microphone, adjusting it for her height.

"Welcome everyone! On behalf of the Shinra Company, I want to thank you all for being here on this historical day!" Scarlet paused for dramatic effect, smiling pleasantly as she stared towards the cameras through the glare of the spotlights. "As I'm sure you're all aware of by now, you've all been gathered here today to bear witness to the execution of two of the most callous individuals to ever roam this planet: Tifa Lockhart and Barret Wallace."

The cameras panned over to the two individuals in question, taking close-ups for the world to see. "These two criminals are both members of the infamous Avalanche terrorist organisation, and have been found guilty of numerous crimes both against the Shinra Company and the world at large. As such, they will be forfeiting their lives today as punishment for their acts of terror."

"This is fuckin' bullshit!" yelled out Barret suddenly as he tried to lunge towards Scarlet on the podium, but the bound man was quickly restrained and knocked almost senseless with the butt of a gun across his face, silencing him for the time being.

"As you can see from this outburst," said a passionate Scarlet as she waved towards the two bound captives, "these two are truly unrepentant, dangerous animals that need to be put down for the good of the world! Justice will be served today!" Cheers erupted from the crowd, causing Tifa and Barret to scowl in disgust.

Scarlet waved to the crowd as she walked off the podium and headed towards a heavy iron door to the side of the room, her ill-dressed guard following closely behind her like a well behaved lapdog. The prisoners were dragged along by a group of soldiers and were paraded before the cameras before being forced to wait next to Scarlet as she waited for the reinforced door to be unlocked.

As the heavy door swung open, two guards grabbed hold of Barret, intending on pulling him into the room first, but they were immediately stopped by Scarlet. "She goes first," said the blonde as she pointed to the bound brunette, smiling wickedly.

A pair of soldiers escorted the ill-fated woman inside the small enclosed room, stopping next to a functional looking metallic chair welded to the floor in the centre of the room. There, they forced the struggling girl to sit as they unbound her hands from behind her back. It took two men on each of her arms before they could manage to force them down against the cold metal armrests; they made no effort to restrain her legs, as none of the soldiers present wanted to risk getting kicked by the legendary martial artist.

Scarlet walked over to Tifa's side, a triumphant smile brightening up her features as she towered over her rival. She roughly snapped the first shackle over Tifa's left wrist, tightening it far more than was required to try and inflict as much discomfort on her prisoner as possible. When Tifa failed to react to the painfully restrictive binding, Scarlet scowled. Angered by the girl's last bout of defiance, she circled over to the other side of the chair, securing the other shackle hastily. Once she was certain her prisoner had no way of fighting back, she slapped her across the face.

"I hope you suffer a painful death thanks to those neurotoxic gases, you stuck up little bitch."

With that she whirled on her heels and stormed off towards the door with her guard in tow, the other soldiers having already exited the room a few moments prior. She failed to notice her missing keys as the door closed behind them, sealing shut.

"Alright!" said Scarlet as she headed towards the podium quickly, intent on making her speech short and sweet before activating the gas chamber. "Let's get this show started!"

No sooner had she spoken those words, a deafening blare of sirens suddenly resounded throughout the room, startling everyone present. The emergency lights turning on at the same time and gave the area an eerie blue glare, making the situation all the more surreal.

"_Emergency! Emergency! A Weapon has been sighted off shore and is currently approaching Junon! All military personnel take your positions! This is not a drill! I repeat: A Weapon…"_

"The Weapon is coming?" "Run for your lives!" "Oh God! We're all going to die!"

The panicked cries of the crowd all but drowned out the announcement still booming from the loudspeakers; people were overturning chairs and bumping into one another in their rush to escape from the room, paying absolutely no heed to the soldiers trying to put a stop to their exodus, nor the angry cries from Scarlet as she implored for them to stay calm.

"Damn those Weapons to hell!" hollered a red faced Scarlet at the now mostly empty room, frustrated at having her moment of glory stolen from her. Just then a microphone was unexpectedly shoved in her face, forcing the flustered Shinra executive to take notice of the only reporter left in the room.

"Tell me, Miss Scarlet, how do you feel about the current turn of events?" asked the petite Wutainese female reporter in that hurried, overly dramatic tone news anchors sometimes use to add flare to their stories.

"I, well… How do I feel?..." repeated the blonde, embarrassed at having been taken off guard by the reporter and struggling to regain a more professional demeanor. Before she could add another word, a choking cloud of mist hissed out from the microphone directly into Scarlet's face. She gasped in surprised, unintentionally inhaling the gas by doing so. Before she could really process what was happening, Scarlet passed out, crumpling to the floor in an ungraceful heap.

"The hell's goin' on here?" asked Barret after witnessing the strange exchange between Scarlet and the strangely familiar reporter. The gun-armed fighter was still bound and being restrained by two soldiers on either side of him, but had otherwise recovered from his earlier mistreatment.

Barret's confusion only grew as he watched three of the soldiers in the room rush over to arrest the reporter, only to be gunned down by Scarlet's bodyguard. A gunfight erupted in the room between the turncoat guard and the remaining soldiers, forcing both Barret and the unarmed reporter to hit the deck to avoid getting shot.

The fight was short lived, leaving only the soldier turned traitor standing.

"Sheesh… That didn't go _anything _like we had planned…" said the female reporter as she quickly got up off the ground, dusting her navy blue dress suit absentmindedly.

"Get Cait Sith on the phone," ordered the soldier to the small woman as he walked over towards the now kneeling Barret, keys in hand. "We're going to need his directions to get out of the complex in one piece."

"Wait, Cait Sith?... Vincent, is that you?" inquired the dark skinned man as he finally recognised the voice coming from behind the soldier's opaque full faced visor. Vincent nodded curtly before circling behind Barret, quickly undoing the man's shackles.

Flexing his sore wrist as he rose to his feet, Barret eyeballed the Wutainese girl animatedly talking on a PHS device. "Yuffie?" he asked, uncertain.

"Well, _duh_!" said Yuffie as she covered one hand over the phone's mouthpiece briefly, rolling her eyes at her dark skinned friend.

Barret rubbed at the back of his neck, a little embarrassed at having failed to recognise his close ally. "It's just, well, with that dress and that makeup, you look so… Huh…"

"Like a _girl_?" finished the normally tomboyish ninja for him, looking entirely frustrated. "Yeah I know, Cid and Cait wouldn't stop going on and on about it earlier."

"How do we open this?" interrupted Vincent before things could get any more heated between Barret and Yuffie. Both turned to see the ex-Turk puzzling over the knob-less metal door leading to the gas chamber.

"Oh dammit, Tifa!" exclaimed Barret as he and Yuffie rushed over to Vincent's side. The normally crimson clad gunslinger was currently trying to wedge the talons of his clawed hand in the seam between the door and the frame, but there just wasn't enough space to allow for this to happen.

"Tifa!" Barret banged at the door with both his clenched fist and his gun-arm, hoping to grab the trapped girl's attention on the other side. "You okay in there?"

"_Barret_?" came Tifa's muffled voice through the thick metal door. "_I'm alright! I'm just a little tied up right now, but if I can just grab hold of that key that soldier dropped earlier, I should be able to get free from this chair. Who's there with you?_"

"It's just me, Vincent and Yuffie out here right now," answered Barret somewhat distractedly as he felt around the door frame, trying to find a hidden switch or lever that would open the door. "Vincent's probably the one who left that key there for ya."

"Hey guys, listen up!" said Yuffie suddenly as she held out her PHS for them to see. "You're on speakerphone Cait. Tell them what you just told me."

"_The door leading to the gas chamber is magnetically locked. The only way to open it is from a control room situated on the opposite end of this floor."_

"Goddamn…" muttered Barret under his breath, before banging once more on the door. "Did you get that Tifa?"

"_Yeah…_"

"Don't worry Tifa!" said Yuffie in a cheerful voice, the energetic girl already heading towards the exit as she spoke. "We'll get that door opened up in a jiffy, and then we'll come right back to get you!"

She hadn't made it halfway across the room when a violent tremor shook the entire building on its very foundations, knocking all three Avalanche members off their feet as flimsy ceiling tiles and dust rained down around them.

"The fuck was that?!" asked a bewildered Barret once the quake had subsided, quickly pulling himself back to his feet.

"_The Weapon just collided head on with the building! Man, that thing is _huge_!" _piped Cait's voice from underneath a pile of debris. Yuffie quickly dug out her PHS from the rubble and secured it to her belt as she ran back to the two men, hopping over the still unconscious Scarlet as she did so.

"_Hey guys, something's not right in here,_"said Tifa suddenly in a strangely strained voice. "_I can hear hissing. I think there might be gas leaking from the pipes…_"

"Shit!" Barret swore under his breath a few more times, panic temporarily clouding his mind as he tried to decide what should be done. He was brought back to his senses when Vincent handed him some ammunition. The gunslinger had forsaken his restrictive helmet at some point and Barret could clearly see the calm, calculated expression etched on the other man's features as he loaded the Shinra issued gun he was currently using with a fresh magazine.

"We need to reach that control room, the sooner the better," said the ex-Turk in a commanding tone as he headed towards the door leading out, not waiting to see if the others would follow. Barret followed after him almost immediately, all too happy to let the other gunner take the lead.

"We're gonna get you out in just a minute, Tifa," yelled Yuffie as she ran after her two male companions. "Just try and hold your breath until we get back, 'kay?"

"_Hurry up! I can't hold my breath forever!"_

Sirens and emergency strobe lights were still going strong as the trio ran through the deserted corridors of the military installation, making the unfamiliar settings all the more confusing to navigate. They somehow ended up going down the wrong hallway at some point, forcing them to double back in order to get back on the right track.

They could hear explosions and heavy gunfire going on outside the building as the Shinra military strived to defend against Weapon's attacks, but from the violent quakes that rocked through the complex from time to time, it seemed they were fighting a losing battle. One of the very worse explosions so far happened just as they approached their destination, causing chunks of plaster to fall from the walls and ceiling in the hall.

"If Cait's right, the control room should be the last door to the right," said Yuffie in between rapid breaths, pointing towards the door in question up ahead.

The trio skidded to a stop upon reaching the door, only to find it locked. Fortunately this was just a regular wooden door, and after a couple of good kicks from Vincent the lock simply broke through the cheap frame, allowing the door to swing open to reveal a brightly lit room. Unfortunately, the sight they were greeted to once inside was anything but what they had expected to find.

"Ohh… This is not good…" voiced a wide-eyed Yuffie as they slowly stepped inside the control room, looking around what was left of the room with disbelief.

Miscellaneous items were strewn everywhere in the first half of the room. Pieces of half burnt papers and other light weight detritus were floating around the dumbstruck trio in strange twisting patterns, carried by a strong sea breeze that would normally be considered out of place inside an office space, but considering how half the room had somehow been replaced by a gaping hole leading to the outside, it was to be expected.

"Is there another way to open the gas chamber?" asked Vincent to the intention of Cait Sith, who was still on the line on Yuffie's PHS.

"'_Fraid not,_" said Cait's disembodied voice from the small device's loudspeaker. "_Listen, I know you guys want to save Tifa, but you reaaally need to get out of there, and quick! Shinra just gave the order to use the Big Cannon, but if that doesn't work there's a pretty good chance that Weapon is going to bring the whole place down with you guys still in it!_"

"The fuck… We ain't leavin' Tifa behind…" growled Barret as he grabbed the PHS off from Yuffie's belt. "Find us another goddamn way to open that door, or I'll just go blast it open myself!"

"_I'm telling you, there is NO other way to get that door opened once it's locked!"_ Exasperation was making Cait Sith's voice higher than usual as he yelled through the PHS. There was a strange sound as if the phone had been dropped on the other end, before Cid's voice replaced Cait's. "_You asshole better get the fuck back up here before I decide to leave you all stranded! Tifa' a big girl, she'll just have to find her own damn way out!" _

"But…"

"_No buts! Dying ain't gonna help no one!_"

"Cid has a point," said Vincent abruptly before Barret had a chance to voice his objection. "If we don't leave now we're all as good as dead, Tifa included."

Conflicting emotions warred over Barret's features for a moment longer before the man's shoulder slumped forward slightly, defeated. Sensing he wasn't going to meet any further resistance from the dark skinned gunner, Vincent rushed back through the door with his two companions in tow, taking the lead once again as they followed Cait's directions out of the complex building.

They met very little resistance on their way out, most of the Soldiers already too busy defending against the Weapon to really care about their little misfit group. They blasted through one last pair of double-doors, finally making it outside next to the landing pad where the airship was waiting for them.

"We're using _this _damn thing to escape? How the hell did we manage that?!" asked Barret incredulously as they climbed up a rope ladder leading to the airship's outer deck. A crewmember quickly pulled up the ladder once the trio was safely on board while another yelled out orders to get the final preparations done before takeoff.

"I guess you could say we sort of _borrowed_ it from Shinra, thanks to Cid's awesome connections," explained Yuffie, smiling cockily.

"_Everyone onboard_?" boomed Cid's disembodied voice from the airship's speaker system. "_Alright, hold on to your socks 'cause here we go_!"

Holding on for dear life on the deck's metal railings as the airship quickly lurched up into the sky, the three Avalanche members watched in awe at the battle unfolding far below. About half a mile offshore, a gigantic creature – some sort of strange cross between a predatory fish and a monstrous sea snake – was currently swimming at an incredible speed towards Junon, intent on ramming itself against the heavily damaged military complex as it had done multiple times before.

Shinra soldiers could be seen lined up along the beach, firing weapons ranging from simple handguns to rocket launchers at the quickly approaching, while others were manning the various cannons lining the outside wall of the fortified building. Despite the incredible amount of firepower being used by the Shinra military, nothing seemed to slow down the Weapon in its relentless approach. The only piece of artillery conspicuously not in use at the moment was Junon's signature weapon – the Big Cannon – as it was currently being charged up for an attack.

As the Airship circled over the scene, the Weapon immerged from the ocean, its unsettling reptilian eyes fixated on its target as it made its final approach. It unhinged its massive maw as it continued to swim forward, and in the blink of an eye a brilliant beam of pure energy shot out from its mouth and struck the side of the building, leaving a long gaping hole in its wake.

Seemingly dissatisfied with the amount of devastation it had dealt with its last attack, the scaly monstrosity closed the gap between itself and the building, opening its mouth once more to unleash another energy beam. A powerful explosion resounded suddenly, only it wasn't from the Weapon's attack; the Big Cannon had finally finished charging just the gargantuan creature was passing in front of it and fired, unleashing its potently destructive load directly down the Weapon's throat. The Weapon died instantly, sinking back into the ocean's depth with a splash.

As the airship hovered over the watery battlefield, Barret suddenly ran over to the railing facing the Big Cannon, pointing to something in the distance. "It's Tifa!" he hollered in order to be heard over the combined roar of the wind and engines. "I can see Tifa running towards the cannon!"

Vincent and Yuffie rushed over to his side in time to witness Tifa being cornered on the massive cannon by Scarlet and a group of soldiers.

Immediately, Yuffie whipped out her PHS. "Cid! Tifa's…"

"_Yeah, I see her,_" cut in the captain just as the airship swung over towards their stranded comrade. "_Get that ladder ready for the lady, boys; We only get one try at this!" _

No sooner was the order given, the crewmen still present on the outside deck rushed to action, throwing the heavy rope ladder overboard to let it hang freely beneath the ship.

"Tifa!" yelled out Yuffie as loud as she could to try and get the girl's attention, but by then the martial artist had already taken notice of the approaching aircraft. Tifa ran to the end of the cannon with her pursuers at her heels and jumped as far as she could into the empty air just as the ladder passed her by. For a terrifying second, the trio on deck lost sight of her and feared she might have missed and fallen to her death, but no sooner had this thought crossed their minds she reappeared inside their field of view, carefully scaling up the rickety rope ladder as the airship quickly sailed away from Junon.

Once Tifa had made onto the safety of the deck and after a couple of quick, tearful hugs from Yuffie and Barret, the newly reunited friends finally entered inside the aircraft, somehow finding their way to the spacious bridge where the rest of Avalanche were waiting for them.

A chair swiveled near the very front of the room as they entered, revealing an incredibly proud looking Cid bathed in the light of the setting sun filtering through the large cockpit windows.

"Welcome to my new baby," said the pilot, grinning from ear to ear. "Welcome to the Highwind!"

* * *

**Author's note:** _It's late… I'm going to bed now. Hope you all enjoy this chapter! ;-)_


End file.
